Slovenia's Andrej Šporn at the 2010 Winter Olympics downhill in a typical downhill body position
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Downhill is a form of alpine skiing competition. Whereas the other alpine skiing events (slalom, giant slalom, super giant slalom, and combined) emphasize turning and technique, downhill emphasizes 'the six components of technique, courage, speed, risk, physical condition and judgement', according to the FIS 'International Ski Competition Rules (ICR)'.[1] Speeds of up to 130 km/h (81 mph) are common in international competition. Athletes must have an aerodynamically efficient tuck position to minimize drag and increase speed.[2]
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The term, 'downhill skiing', is also used as a synonym for alpine skiing as a recreational activity.[3][4]
- 7Downhill at the 'big competitions'
History[edit]
The rules for downhill skiing competitions were originally developed by Sir Arnold Lunn for the 1921 British National Ski Championships. A speed of 100 miles per hour (161 km/h) was first achieved by Johan Clarey at the 2013LauberhornWorld Cup,[5] beating the previous record of 98 mph (158 km/h), set by Italian Stefan Thanei in 2005.[6][7]
Course[edit]
The FIS has rules for downhill courses that encompass their general characteristics, width, safety precautions, vertical drop, course length, style and placement of gates.[1]
- General characteristics – As a test of 'technique, courage, speed, risk, physical condition and judgement', the course requires the athlete to adapt to the technically demanding terrain and layout of gates.
- Width – Courses are typically 30 metres (100 ft) wide with allowances for the approaches to 'lips, drop-offs and jumps'.
- Safety – Obstacles on courses are expected to be protected with nets, fences, or pads.
- Vertical drop – Vertical drop ranges from 450 to 1,100 metres (1,480 to 3,610 ft) for men and 450 to 800 metres (1,480 to 2,620 ft) for women. Races with two runs may be shorter.
- Course length – Courses require an accurate means of measurement for length.
- Gates – Gates consist of pairs of twin poles with a rectangular panel between the poles. Gates have an 8-metre (26 ft) or larger opening.
Equipment[edit]
Austrian Downhill racing suit
Equipment for the downhill is different from the alpine events that are lower-speed. Skis are 30% longer than those used in slalom, for more stability at high speed. They usually have rounded, low-profile tips rather than pointed tips. Ski poles are bent so as to curve around the body as the racer stays in a 'tuck position' and may have aerodynamic, cone-shaped baskets. As in other alpine disciplines, downhill racers wear skin-tight suits to minimize drag, and helmets are mandatory.
In an attempt to increase safety, the 2003–2004 season saw the FIS increase the minimum sidecut radius for downhill skis to 45 metres (148 ft) from 40 metres (131 ft), and impose minimum ski lengths for the first time: 218 cm (7 ft 2 in) for men, and 210 cm (6 ft 11 in) for women.
Races[edit]
In all forms of downhill, both at a local youth-level as well as the higher FIS international level, racers are allowed extensive preparation for the race, which includes daily course inspection and discussion with their coaches and teammates as well as several practice runs before the actual race. Racers do not make any unnecessary turns while on the course, and try to do everything they can to maintain the most aerodynamic position while negotiating turns and jumps.
Unlike slalom and giant slalom, where racers have the times of two runs combined, the downhill race is a single run. Times are typically between 1½ and 2½ minutes for World Cup courses and must be over 1 minute in duration to meet international minimum standards. Tenths and hundredths and, occasionally, thousandths of seconds count: World Cup races and Olympic medals have sometimes been decided by as little as one or two hundredths of a second, and ties are not unheard of.
The most successful all-time winners of World Cup downhill races are Annemarie Moser-Pröll of Austria (36 wins, 7 women's titles)[8] and Franz Klammer of Austria (25 wins, 5 men's titles).[9]Lindsey Vonn of the U.S. is currently dominant in woman's downhill racing with a lifetime total of 37 World Cup downhill wins and 7 women's titles.[10][11]
Risks[edit]
On some courses, such as the Lauberhorn course in Wengen, Switzerland, and the Hahnenkamm course in Kitzbühel, Austria, speeds of up to 150 km/h (93 mph) are common. Safety netting and padding are placed where race officials anticipate potential crashes. Despite these safety precautions, the ski racing community is well aware of the inherent risks of downhill skiing, for it is possible for racers to suffer serious injury or death while practising or competing. Three deaths among World Cup racers in recent years in downhill training or during a race were those of Austrians Gernot Reinstadler (1991) and Ulrike Maier (1994), and France's Régine Cavagnoud (2001). Also in 2001, Swiss downhiller Silvano Beltrametti was paralyzed in a high-speed crash and 1984 Olympic gold medalistBill Johnson suffered permanent brain damage that eventually led to a crippling stroke which left him unable to function without assistance. Most recently Frenchman David Poisson was killed in a training crash in 2017. Speaking to media after Poisson's death, French former downhiller Luc Alphand noted that 'eliminating risk entirely in downhill is impossible'.[12]
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Men's World Cup podiums[edit]
In the following table men's downhill World Cup podium results in the World Cup since the first season in 1967.[7] Winners receive a distinctive crystal globe.[13]
Season | 1st | 2nd | 3rd |
---|---|---|---|
1967 | Jean-Claude Killy | Guy Périllat | Franz Vogler |
1968 | Gerhard Nenning | Jean-Claude Killy | Karl Schranz |
1969 | Karl Schranz | Henri Duvillard | Heinrich Messner |
1970 | Karl Cordin | Karl Schranz | Henri Duvillard |
1971 | Bernhard Russi | Bernard Orcel | Karl Cordin |
1972 | Bernhard Russi | Karl Schranz | Mike Lafferty |
1973 | Roland Collombin | Bernhard Russi | Marcello Varallo |
1974 | Roland Collombin | Franz Klammer | Herbert Plank |
1975 | Franz Klammer | Werner Grissmann | Herbert Plank |
1976 | Franz Klammer | Herbert Plank | Bernhard Russi |
1977 | Franz Klammer | Josef Walcher | Bernhard Russi |
1978 | Franz Klammer | Josef Walcher | Herbert Plank |
1979 | Peter Mueller | Peter Wirnsberger | Toni Buergler |
1980 | Peter Mueller | Ken Read | Herbert Plank |
1981 | Harti Weirather | Steve Podborski | Peter Mueller |
1982 | Peter Mueller | Steve Podborski | Harti Weirather |
1983 | Franz Klammer | Conradin Cathomen | Harti Weirather |
1984 | Urs Raeber | Erwin Resch | Bill Johnson |
1985 | Helmut Hoeflehner | Peter Mueller | Karl Alpiger |
1986 | Peter Wirnsberger | Peter Mueller | Michael Mair |
1987 | Pirmin Zurbriggen | Peter Mueller | Franz Heinzer |
1988 | Pirmin Zurbriggen | Michael Mair | Rob Boyd |
1989 | Marc Girardelli | Helmut Hoeflehner | Daniel Mahrer |
1990 | Helmut Hoeflehner | Atle Skardal | Pirmin Zurbriggen |
1991 | Franz Heinzer | Atle Skardal | Daniel Mahrer |
1992 | Franz Heinzer | Daniel Mahrer | A.J. Kitt |
1993 | Franz Heinzer | Atle Skardal | William Besse |
1994 | Marc Girardelli | Hannes Trinkl | Patrick Ortlieb |
1995 | Luc Alphand | Kristian Ghedina | Patrick Ortlieb |
1996 | Luc Alphand | Guenther Mader | Patrick Ortlieb |
1997 | Luc Alphand | Kristian Ghedina | Fritz Strobl |
1998 | Andreas Schifferer | Hermann Maier | Nicolas Burtin |
1999 | Lasse Kjus | Andreas Schifferer | Werner Franz |
2000 | Hermann Maier | Kristian Ghedina | Josef Strobl |
2001 | Hermann Maier | Stephan Eberharter | Fritz Strobl |
2002 | Stephan Eberharter | Fritz Strobl | Kristian Ghedina |
2003 | Stephan Eberharter | Daron Rahlves | Michael Walchhofer |
2004 | Stephan Eberharter | Daron Rahlves | Hermann Maier |
2005 | Michael Walchhofer | Bode Miller | Hermann Maier |
2006 | Michael Walchhofer | Fritz Strobl | Daron Rahlves |
2007 | Didier Cuche | Marco Buechel | Erik Guay |
2008 | Didier Cuche | Bode Miller | Michael Walchhofer |
2009 | Michael Walchhofer | Klaus Kroell | Didier Defago |
2010 | Didier Cuche | Carlo Janka | Werner Heel |
2011 | Didier Cuche | Michael Walchhofer | Klaus Kroell |
2012 | Klaus Kroell | Beat Feuz | Didier Cuche |
2013 | Aksel Lund Svindal | Klaus Kroell | Dominik Paris |
2014 | Aksel Lund Svindal | Hannes Reichelt | Erik Guay |
2015 | Kjetil Jansrud | Hannes Reichelt | Guillermo Fayed |
2016 | Peter Fill | Aksel Lund Svindal | Dominik Paris |
2017 | Peter Fill | Kjetil Jansrud | Dominik Paris |
Downhill at the 'big competitions'[edit]
Medal table[edit]
Country | Gold | Silver | Bronze | All | Host nation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Austria | 27 | 12 | 26 | 65 | 7 (2 x WOG, 5 x WCH) |
Switzerland | 17 | 21 | 12 | 48 | 4 (4 x WCH) |
France | 8 | 9 | 6 | 21 | 3 (2 x WOG, 1 x WCH) |
United States | 7 | 9 | 10 | 26 | 6 (3 x WOG, 3 x WCH) |
Germany (+West Germany, United Team of Germany) | 6 | 4 | 7 | 16 | 2 (2 x WCH) |
/ Canada | 7 | 4 | 5 | 16 | 2 (2 x WOG) |
Norway | 4 | 12 | 2 | 18 | 1 (1 x WOG) |
Slovenia | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
Italy | 1 | 8 | 6 | 15 | 6 (2 x WOG, 4 x WCH) |
Sweden | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 2 (2 x WCH) |
Croatia | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Liechtenstein | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
Australia | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Czechoslovakia | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
USSR | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Medalists[edit]
Year | Competition | Venue | Champions | 2nd Place | 3rd Place | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2019 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Åre | Kjetil Jansrud | Ilka Štuhec | Aksel Lund Svindal | Corinne Suter | Vincent Kriechmayr | Lindsey Vonn |
2018 | Winter Olympic Games | Pyeongchang | Aksel Lund Svindal | Sofia Goggia | Kjetil Jansrud | Ragnhild Mowinckel | Beat Feuz | Lindsey Vonn |
2017 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | St. Moritz | Beat Feuz | Ilka Štuhec | Erik Guay | Stephanie Venier | Max Franz | Lindsey Vonn |
2015 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Beaver Creek and Vail | Patrick Küng | Tina Maze | Travis Ganong | Anna Fenninger | Beat Feuz | Lara Gut |
2014 | Winter Olympic Games | Sochi | Matthias Mayer | Tina Maze | Christof Innerhofer | not awarded | Kjetil Jansrud | Lara Gut |
Dominique Gisin | ||||||||
2013 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Schladming | Aksel Lund Svindal | Marion Rolland | Dominik Paris | Nadia Fanchini | David Poisson | Maria Höfl-Riesch |
2011 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Garmisch-Partenkirchen | Erik Guay | Elisabeth Görgl | Didier Cuche | Lindsey Vonn | Christof Innerhofer | Maria Riesch |
2010 | Winter Olympic Games | Vancouver | Didier Defago | Lindsey Vonn | Aksel Lund Svindal | Julia Mancuso | Bode Miller | Elisabeth Görgl |
2009 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Val d'Isere | John Kucera | Lindsey Vonn | Didier Cuche | Lara Gut | Carlo Janka | Nadia Fanchini |
2007 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Åre | Aksel Lund Svindal | Anja Pärson | Jan Hudec | Lindsey C. Kildow | Patrik Järbyn | Nicole Hosp |
2006 | Winter Olympic Games | Torino | Antoine Dénériaz | Michaela Dorfmeister | Michael Walchhofer | Martina Schild | Bruno Kernen | Anja Pärson |
2005 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Bormio | Bode Miller | Janica Kostelić | Daron Rahlves | Elena Fanchini | Michael Walchhofer | Renate Götschl |
2003 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | St. Moritz | Michael Walchhofer | Mélanie Turgeon | Kjetil André Aamodt | Corinne Rey-Bellet | Bruno Kernen | Alexandra Meissnitzer |
2002 | Winter Olympic Games | Salt Lake City | Fritz Strobl | Carole Montillet | Lasse Kjus | Isolde Kostner | Stephan Eberharter | Renate Götschl |
2001 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | St. Anton | Hannes Trinkl | Michaela Dorfmeister | Hermann Maier | Renate Götschl | Florian Eckert | Selina Heregger |
1999 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Beaver Creek and Vail | Hermann Maier | Renate Götschl | Lasse Kjus | Michaela Dorfmeister | Kjetil André Aamodt | Stefanie Schuster |
1998 | Winter Olympic Games | Nagano | Jean-Luc Crétier | Katja Seizinger | Lasse Kjus | Pernilla Wiberg | Hannes Trinkl | Florence Masnada |
1997 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Sestriere | Bruno Kernen | Hilary Lindh | Lasse Kjus | Heidi Zurbriggen | Kristian Ghedina | Pernilla Wiberg |
1996 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Seirra Nevada | Patrick Ortlieb | Picabo Street | Kristian Ghedina | Katja Seizinger | Luc Alphand | Hilary Lindh |
1994 | Winter Olympic Games | Lillehammer | Tommy Moe | Katja Seizinger | Kjetil André Aamodt | Picabo Street | Ed Podivinsky | Isolde Kostner |
1993 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Morioka | Urs Lehmann | Kate Pace | Atle Skårdal | Astrid Lødemel | A.J. Kitt | Anja Haas |
1992 | Winter Olympic Games | Albertville | Patrick Ortlieb | Kerrin Lee-Gartner | Franck Piccard | Hilary Lindh | Günther Mader | Veronika Wallinger |
1991 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Saalbach-Hinterglemm | Franz Heinzer | Petra Kronberger | Peter Runggaldier | Nathalie Bouvier | Daniel Mahrer | Svetlana Gladisheva |
1989 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Vail | Hans-Jörg Tauscher | Maria Walliser | Peter Müller | Karen Percy | Karl Alpiger | Karin Dedler |
1988 | Winter Olympic Games | Calgary | Pirmin Zurbriggen | Marina Kiehl | Peter Müller | Brigitte Oertli | Franck Piccard | Karen Percy |
1987 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Crans-Montana | Peter Müller | Maria Walliser | Pirmin Zurbriggen | Michela Figini | Karl Alpiger | Regine Mösenlechner |
1985 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Bormio | Pirmin Zurbriggen | Michela Figini | Peter Müller | Ariane Ehrat | Doug Lewis | Katharina Gutensohn |
1984 | Winter Olympic Games | Sarajevo | Bill Johnson | Michela Figini | Peter Müller | Maria Walliser | Anton Steiner | Olga Charvátová |
1982 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Schladming | Harti Weirather | Gerry Sorensen | Conradin Cathomen | Cindy Nelson | Erwin Resch | Laurie Graham |
1980 | Winter Olympic Games * | Lake Placid | Leonhard Stock | Annemarie Moser-Pröll | Peter Wirnsberger | Hanni Wenzel | Steve Podborski | Marie-Theres Nadig |
1978 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Garmisch-Partenkirchen | Josef Walcher | Annemarie Moser-Pröll | Michael Veith | Irene Epple | Werner Grissmann | Doris de Agostini |
1976 | Winter Olympic Games * | Innsbruck | Franz Klammer | Rosi Mittermaier | Bernhard Russi | Brigitte Totschnig | Herbert Plank | Cindy Nelson |
1974 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | St. Moritz | David Zwilling | Annemarie Pröll | Franz Klammer | Betsy Clifford | Willi Frommelt | Wiltrud Drexel |
1972 | Winter Olympic Games * | Sapporo | Bernhard Russi | Marie-Theres Nadig | Roland Collombin | Annemarie Pröll | Heini Messner | Susan Corrock |
1970 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Val Gardena | Bernhard Russi | Annerösli Zryd | Karl Cordin | Isabelle Mir | Malcolm Milne | Annemarie Pröll |
1968 | Winter Olympic Games * | Grenoble | Jean-Claude Killy | Olga Pall | Guy Périllat | Isabelle Mir | Jean-Daniel Dätwyler | Christl Haas |
1966 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Portillo | Jean-Claude Killy | Marielle Goitschel | Léo Lacroix | Annie Famose | Franz Vogler | Burgl Färbinger |
1964 | Winter Olympic Games * | Innsbruck | Egon Zimmermann | Christl Haas | Léo Lacroix | Edith Zimmermann | Wolfgang Bartels | Traudl Hecher |
1962 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Chamonix | Karl Schranz | Christl Haas | Émile Viollat | Pia Riva | Egon Zimmermann | Barbara Ferries |
1960 | Winter Olympic Games * | Squaw Valley | Jean Vuarnet | Heidi Biebl | Hans Peter Lanig | Penny Pitou | Guy Périllat | Traudl Hecher |
1958 | FIS Alpine World Ski Championships | Bad Gastein | Toni Sailer | Lucile Wheeler | Roger Staub | Frieda Dänzer | Jean Vuarnet | Carla Marchelli |
1956 | Winter Olympic Games * | Cortina d'Ampezzo | Toni Sailer | Madeleine Berthod | Raymond Fellay | Frieda Dänzer | Anderl Molterer | Lucile Wheeler |
![Downhill Downhill](/uploads/1/2/4/8/124896555/461838472.jpg)
(*) - also served as WCH (GS and Combined were competed as well but did not count four WOG)
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ ab50th International Ski Congress (July 2016), The International Ski Competition Rules (ICR)(PDF), Cancun: Fédération Internationale de Ski (FIS), p. 83.
- ^First Tracks!! Online Ski Magazine (October 11, 2011). Canadian Ski Racers Train in Wind Tunnel.
- ^Editors (2017). 'Cambridge Dictionary'. Cambridge.org. Cambridge University Press. Retrieved 2017-02-16.
skiing down slopes, rather than along level ground
- ^Editors (2017). 'Merriam-Webster Dictionary'. Merriam-Webster.com. Merriam-Webster, Incorporated. Retrieved 2017-02-16.
a: the sport of skiing on downhill trails—often used attributively. b: a skiing race against time down a trail
- ^'French skier sets speed record of 100 mph in downhill'. USA Today. Associated Press. January 19, 2013. Retrieved January 8, 2018.
- ^'Wengen Downhill World Cup Race - Lauberhorn - SnowKings'. www.snowkings.co.uk.
- ^ ab'Downhill - Top ten racers since 1967'. prussianmachine.com. Retrieved 9 February 2018.
- ^International Ski Federation (FIS). Biography: Annemarie Moser-Pröll. FIS Legends. Retrieved on: 2011-12-27.
- ^International Ski Federation (FIS). Biography: Franz Klammer. FIS Legends. Retrieved on: 2011-12-27.
- ^International Ski Federation (FIS). Biography: Lindsey Vonn. FIS Legends. Retrieved on: 2011-12-27.
- ^The Australian (December 05, 2011). Lindsey Vonn wins 23rd World Cup downhill in Canada. Retrieved on: 2011-12-27.
- ^'French downhill skier David Poisson dies after training crash at Nakiska'. CBC.ca. 13 November 2017. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
- ^International Ski Foundation. 'FIS World Cup Trophy'(PDF). www.fis-ski.com. International Ski Federation. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
The FIS World Cup trophy is a trophy manufactured solely for the International Ski Federation. The trophy, unique in terms of the glass refining techniques used, is exclusively awarded to the FIS World Cup winners of each discipline at the Season Finals.
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Downhill_(ski_competition)&oldid=894874310'
Alpine skiing is a little weird. You've got all of these different names and all of these different disciplines. What's a slalom? How does combined work? And what in the world is super-G? Here's what you need to know about skiing: They're going really fast, the biggest different in disciplines is how technical they need to be to go faster.
However, alpine skiing is just an umbrella moniker. At the Winter Olympics, five different disciplines fall in the alpine skiing category: Slalom, giant slalom, super-G, downhill and the combined. Among these five events, slalom and giant slalom are 'technical' disciplines, while super-G and downhill are 'speed' events. The combined, meanwhile, is an alpine biathlon of sorts, in which racers must show off their technical skill-set in the slalom and their penchant for dangerous downhill speeds.
With all of that in mind, there are very different rules and techniques that go into all five disciplines. There are 13 total Alpine events: six for men, six for women and one mixed.
Men's alpine
- Alpine combined men
- Downhill men
- Giant slalom men
- Slalom men
- Super combined men
- Super-G men
Women's alpine
- Alpine combined women
- Downhill women
- Giant slalom women
- Slalom women
- Super Combined women
- Super-G women
Mixed alpine
- Parallel mixed team event
Here's a look at each of the five disciplines -- plus what goes into the combined.
Slalom
Slalom features the shortest course of any of the disciplines, so naturally it makes sense to start there. A technical discipline, slalom has 'gates' (the sets of poles along the course) that skiers must ski between. The gates are set extremely close together, so it requires quick, tight turns to do well. As we all know, the fastest path between two points is a straight line, meaning that skiers try to minimize how much they have to turn to get through each gate. In doing so, you'll see skiers hit the gates with their hands or shins to get them out of the way. Slalom looks like chaos on the course, what with the strange alignment to the poles, but it's fast and technical, lending to its appeal.
Giant slalom
Downhill Ski Racing Games Online
Giant slalom is like slalom, but BIGGER. It has different gates from slalom, with two poles conjoined by flags rather than one. There are different colors. Racers must find a path through one color. The turns are bigger than slalom, making finding a path that much more essential.
Scoring in technical disciplines
The scoring here is pretty simple. Each skier gets two runs, with the first run's start being determined by both draw and World Cup ranking. After that, the field is whittled down to 30 skiers -- who go in reverse order from their time in the first run. The reason for this is to level the playing field. Think about hockey, and how the ice gets worn as a period goes on. The same thing happens in a slalom course. There are more bumps, the ground isn't as smooth, and it ultimately impacts time. In the end, the times from each run are added up -- with the shortest time being the winner.
Downhill
Downhill is, in a word, insane. It doesn't take much explaining, mind you. Skiers start really high up on a very steep drop and must complete a course that is as close to straight as you'll get in an Alpine discipline. Runs are quick here, and speed is of the essence. Skiers can hit speeds surpassing 80 mph while flying down the course. It isn't devoid of technical skill -- there are semblances of turns to be made -- but this discipline is all about getting to the bottom and then figuring out how the heck to stop.
Super-G
Downhill Racing Ski Length
Super-G is like downhill lite. You're still trying to get the bottom as quickly as possible, but it's a shorter course and the turns are tighter. Athletes often end up turning their bodies into the ground on super-G runs, as they're making tight turns at incredible speeds. With that in mind, it's downhill with a twist -- it's reliant on patience and knowing where on the course to speed up as much as it's about technical skill and the ability to accelerate.
The combined
The combined is just like it sounds: a combination of slalom and downhill. A traditional combined competition consists of one run of downhill and two runs of slalom -- and the skier with the fastest combined time wins. It's a true test of alpine skiing, since often skiers specialize in one racing form or another.
A course set has just as much to do with the results as slope. Alpine skiing is of the few disciplines at the Winter Games that requires thorough reconnaissance before a run can even be made. It's extremely challenging as Olympians try to make their way to the bottom. There's also weather to consider, which has already played a factor in this year's Olympics.
Downhill Ski Racing Suits
Finally, equipment presents a key component of these races. The general rule is that longer skis elongate the turn radius and increase speed. There's always a rub. So shorter skis will allow for tighter turns, but they can also reduce the speed on straightaways.
There is one more event, and it's a parallel team event. There are two giant slaloms next to each other, and racers of the same gender race side-by-side. It's a heat format, and the winner of each heat advances to the next round.
There are all sorts of challenges presented by downhill skiing. Whether it's the course, the skill component, the speed component, having the wrong skis that day -- any number of variables can affect the result of the race. Just ask Bode Miller, who'll be calling races on NBC. Add in that racers must know when to tuck (put their poles at their sides and coast) or glide, and it becomes even more challenging. You can see alpine skiing throughout the Olympics, with the men finally set to take the course on Monday night at 8 p.m. for the downhill run of the combined. You can also see the full Olympics TV schedule by clicking this link.