Regardless of whether they win gold, athletes at this year's Winter Olympics will no doubt expend a significant number of calories as they try to ski, jump and skate their way past the competition, Fox News reports.

But which winter sport burns the most calories?

According to the Compendium of Physical Activities, a standardized list of the calories burned during many different types of activities, the title goes to cross-country skiing. 

Other winter sports near the top of the list include figure skating, which burns 245 calories in 10 minutes, and speed skating, which burns about 230 calories in 10 minutes.

Lower down on the list are downhill skiing, which burns about 140 calories per 10 minutes, bobsledding/luge, which burns about 122 calories, and curling, which burns 70 calories.

In comparison, excited spectators will burn about 60 calories in 10 minutes just watching the action.

Cross-country skiing, figure skating and speed skating are aerobic activities that require a significant amount of oxygen consumption, so they burn more calories, said Richard Cotton, an exercise physiologist and national director of certification at the American College of Sports Medicine.

Other sports, such as sledding and curling, require less oxygen consumption and thus burn fewer calories, Cotton told Live Science. But these latter sports rely more on other aspects of athleticism, such as coordination, he said.