Winter Olympics: Alpine Skiing
Bode vs. The Hermanator
by John Gettings and Christine Frantz
Before it was a sport,
skiing was an important means of transportation.
The exact origin
of skiing is unclear, but there is evidence that
Scandinavians were using skis to travel and hunt over snow-covered terrain
as far back as 4,000 years ago.
Organized slalom races were first
introduced in Europe during the 1920s and the first world championship was
organized in 1931. Shortly thereafter, Americans caught on and interest in
this country snowballed throughout the 1930s.
Alpine skiing made its
Olympic debut at the 1936 Garmisch-Partenkirchen
Games with a men's and women's combined event, featuring a downhill and
two slalom runs. Giant slalom first appeared at the
1952 Oslo Games and the super giant slalom, or super G, was added at the 1988 Calgary Games.
Men and women will
each compete in five Alpine skiing events at Torino:
- downhill: a steep descent against time
- slalom: a short race featuring sharp turns around flags
- giant slalom: longer, looser version of the slalom
- super G: slalom race that is a bit faster and longer than the giant
slalom
- combined: one downhill run followed by two slalom runs; fastest
combined time wins
Men's events and women's slalom and giant slalom will take place
at Sestriere, 100 km (67 mi) from Torino. Women's downhill, super G, and combined
events will take place at San Sicario Fraiteve, near Sestriere. Event finals
are scheduled to occur Feb. 12–25.
U.S. hopes are high this
year with Bode Miller planning to compete in the Games. Miller took home the
overall honors in the 2005 World Cup—the first American to do so in
22 years. And the Herminator—Austria's Hermann Maier—is expected
to return.
It's no coincidence that Western European countries at
the foot of the Alps have dominated
this sport—particularly Austria, which has won 85 medals, including
26 gold.
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