Alpine Slalom Skiing
By: Allison Pitala
The History of Skiing
Skiing changed from a method of transportation into a sporting activity during the late 19th century. The first non-military skiing competitions are reported to have been held in the 1840s in Norway. The first national skiing competition in Norway, in 1868, is regarded as the beginning of a new era of skiing enthusiasm. A few decades later, the sport spread to the remainder of Europe and to the US, where miners held skiing competitions to entertain themselves during the winter. The first slalom competition was organised by Sir Arnold Lunn in 1922, in Switzerland. Slalom is an alpine skiing sport, involving skiing between poles or gates. These are spaced more closely than those in giant slalom and downhill, and the skier accelerates quicker and has shorter turns. Men’s and women’s alpine skiing both debuted on the Olympic Games in 1936, and some well known Olympics athletes who competed for this sport are Phil Mahre, Nolan Kasper, Mikaela Shriffin, Barbara Cochran, and Gretchen Fraser.