The Asian Winter Games (AWG) is an international multi-sport event held every four years for members of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) featuring winter events.

The Japanese Olympic Committee first suggested creating a winter version of the Asian Games in 1982.

Their efforts were rewarded when they received hosting rights for the first edition, held in Sapporo in 1986, as the city had the infrastructure and expertise gained from hosting of the 1972 Winter Olympics.

In the 2007 Asian Winter Games in Changchun, 27 out of the 45 members fielded a record number of competitors, while all 45 National Olympic Committees sent delegations for the first time in AWG history.

[11] Only China, Japan, and South Korea have won at least one gold medal at every Asian Winter Games, while Japan, China, and Kazakhstan became the only three countries in history to emerge as the first places at the medal tables.