The 1998 Games in Nagano, Japan was the first Paralympic Winter Games to be held outside Europe, and helped to enhance the integration of athletes with a disability and to deepen international goodwill. The Games were held from 5 to 14 March. His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince of Japan officiated at the Opening Ceremony on 5 March.

During the 10 days of competition, a total of 34 events took place across the four sports: Alpine Skiing, Ice Sledge Hockey, Ice Sledge Racing and Nordic Skiing. Some 1,146 participants from 32 countries were at the Nagano Games, including 571 athletes and 575 officials. Norway repeated its success at the 1994 Games by topping the medal table with 18 golds. Germany was close behind with 14 gold medals, followed by the USA with 13 gold medals.

The Nagano Games clearly demonstrated rising media and public interest in Paralympic winter sport. A total of 151,376 spectators were recorded during the Games, including 15,634 for the Opening and Closing Ceremonies. A total of 1,468 media representatives (press, cameramen and broadcasters) covered the Games. The official Games website recorded a total of 7.7 million hits during the course of the Games, with 1 million hits coming in on the first and second days of competition.