The four official mascots of the 1998 Winter Olympics were collectively known as the Snowlets.
The Nagano Games’ mascots were four snowy owls named Sukki, Nokki, Lekki, and Tsukki. Their group name combines “snow” with “owlets,” while the four-member design reflected both the four-year Olympiad and the four major islands of Japan.
Each owl represented one of four elements: Sukki symbolized fire, Nokki air, Lekki earth, and Tsukki water. Together, the mascots were intended to connect the winter setting with Japanese natural imagery and a youthful, friendly Olympic identity.
Landor Associates created the designs, and the names were selected from 47,484 suggestions. The individual names are often mistaken for the collective answer: Sukki is only one mascot, not the name of the group. “Neve and Gliz” belonged to the 2006 Turin Winter Olympics, while Hidy and Howdy represented Calgary in 1988.