San Marino first entered Olympic competition at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome. The nation did not enter a Winter Olympic Games until Innsbruck in 1976. Excepting the 1980 and 1998 Winter Olympics they have participated in every edition of the Winter Olympics since, making Vancouver the nation's eighth Winter Olympics appearance. Like the 2006 Olympics, the Sammarinesi delegation consisted of a single athlete, Marino Cardelli, returning for his second consecutive Olympics. Cardelli was chosen as the flag bearer for the opening ceremony, while Gian Luca Borgagni, the Chef de Mission for the delegation, was selected for the closing ceremony.