What Alpine Ski Races are Held in the Winter Olympics?

The Winter Olympics are almost upon us and Lindsey Vonn and the rest of US Ski Team are prepped for some gold medal runs in Vancouver. But if you're anything like me, your only worry, as you stare over the tips of your rented skis at what could very well be the edge of the earth, is how in the world to arrive safely, limbs attached, at the bottom of the hill. A man of my meager talents cannot be troubled with things like style or method when it comes to my once-a-year trips to the ski resorts. But each time the Winter Olympics come around, I find myself glued to the television in anticipation of these ridiculously-clad athletes hurling themselves down the side of a mountain, and the amazing spectacle that Alpine Ski Racing has become.

First, the Downhill event. The objective here is fairly simple: Get your skis on, point them toward the bottom of the hill, and get there faster than any other person insane enough to be engaged in the same competition. What the above objective cleverly oversimplifies is the fact that the course you are throttling through is covered in a sheen of ice and laced with hairpin turns and stomach-dropping jumps. Oh, and the course is 2 miles long, so hang on tight. It won't be over as quickly as you think it will. In the Downhill competition in Vancouver, Olympic skiers will take a single run through the course and the gold medal goes to the one who does it the fastest. Sounds so simple, right?

Now on to the Slalom event. We still want you to go fast here, but we're going to mix it up a bit by adding a series of gates that require a skier to make quick, sharp turns in order to make it through the course, all while heading downhill. This will be the shortest course in Vancouver, but will require the greatest amount of technical skiing ability. To win the gold, Lindsay Vonn or any of her teammates, will need the fastest combined time from 2 separate runs, each completed on a different slalom course.

Up next is the Giant Slalom. Oh, you thought you were done slaloming, eh? (I'm channeling my inner-Canadian here). This event is quite similar to the regular slalom, but it gives you a bit of break on the tight turns. In the Giant Slalom, the gates are spread further apart, allowing the skier to take wider turns as they progress down the course. Same rules apply for the gold: 2 runs on 2 separate courses. Fastest combined time is the winner.

Okay, now that your legs are burning from all those turns, let's talk about the Super G, or the Super Giant Slalom, a specialty for the US's Lindsey Vonn. This event is a mixture of the Downhill (go fast young men, go fast) and the Giant Slalom (I have to turn going this fast?). This course in Vancouver will be longer than the one used for the Giant Slalom, but not quite as long as the one used in the Downhill, and the good news is that you only have to do it once. Again, it is all about speed. The fastest time will win gold.

Finally - the Super Combined. Named because it combines the Downhill and the Slalom. In this event, skiers get one shot at both the downhill course and the slalom course, and the winner is the one with the fastest combined time. There it is. Your crash course in Olympic Alpine Skiing. How are your legs feeling? Most skiers only focus on 1 or 2 or the events. But be sure to look for Lindsay Vonn in Vancouver as she braves the speed, the ice, and hairpin turns competing in all 5 Alpine events. That's right, you heard me all 5. The hot tub is this way, people.


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Scott Duglase is a huge fan of all things sports. As for the Olympics, he is like a kid in a candy store. While he knows he could not hold a candle to the likes of the U.S. Ski Team, he is definitely looking forward to Lindsey Vonn Vancouver 2010 and her exciting race results - maybe there will be gold in her future?