HISTORY OF PARA ALPINE SKIING 

Para alpine skiing is practised worldwide and features six disciplines: downhill, slalom, giant slalom, super-G, super combined, and team events. Athletes combine speed and agility while racing down slopes at speeds of around 100km/h.

The sport was developed following the end of the Second World War, when injured ex-servicemen returned to the sport they loved. In 1948, the first Para alpine skiing courses were offered.

Competition accommodates male and female athletes with a physical impairment such as spinal injury, cerebral palsy, amputation, les autres conditions and blindness/vision impairment.

Athletes compete in three categories based on their functional ability, and a results calculation system allows athletes with different impairments to compete against each other.

Skiers with blindness/vision impairment are guided through the course by sighted guides using signals to indicate the course to follow. Some athletes use equipment that is adapted to their needs including single ski, sit-ski or orthopaedic aids.

World Para Alpine Skiing acts as the International Federation for the sport which is co-ordinated by the World Para Alpine Skiing Technical Committee.

 

 

Five events are on the Paralympic programme: downhill, super-G, super combined, giant slalom, and slalom.

DOWNHILL

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ⒸMichael Knaus

Each athlete competes one run down the course with their finish time determining the final order based on ascending time. Athletes ski down a long, steep course and must pass through a relatively few number of gates. 

If an athlete misses a gate they are disqualified. 

SLALOM

Imagen

ⒸMichael Knaus

Each athlete competes two runs on the same day on different courses. 

Times from the two runs are added together to determine the final order based on ascending total time. It is a technical event over a shorter course than other events but with a high number of gates that the athlete must negotiate. 

If an athlete misses a gate they are disqualified.

GIANT SLALOM 

Imagen

ⒸMichael Knaus

Each athlete completes two runs on the same day on different courses. 

Times from the two runs are added together to determine the final order based on ascending total time. It is a technical event with a longer course and fewer gates than the slalom. The number of gates is determined by the vertical drop of the course. 

If an athlete misses a gate they are disqualified.

SUPER-G

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ⒸAlpine Peak Photography

A speed event where each athlete completes one run down the course with their finish time determining the final order based on ascending time.

The course is generally shorter than downhill but longer than slalom and giant slalom.

SUPER COMBINED

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ⒸSimon Bruty for OIS/IOC

A combined competition which represents the final result of two disciplines - usually one of either a downhill or super-G and a single run of slalom.

Each athlete competes two runs on the same day on different courses. Times from the two runs are added together to determine the final order based on ascending total time.

COMPETITION HISTORY

The first documented Championships for skiers with an impairment were held in Badgastein, Austria, in 1948 with 17 athletes taking part. Since 1950, events have been held around the world. The introduction of sit-ski allowed people in wheelchairs (paraplegics and double above-the-knee amputees) to begin to ski and race.

The first Paralympic Winter Games took place in Örnsköldsvik in Sweden in 1976 and featured two alpine disciplines - slalom and giant slalom.

Downhill was added to the Paralympic programme in 1984 in Innsbruck, Austria, and super-G was added in 1994 at Lillehammer, Norway.

Sit-skiing was introduced as a demonstration sport at the Innsbruck 1984 Paralympics and became a medal event at the Nagano 1998 Games.

 

GROWTH OF PARA ALPINE SKIING AT THE PARALYMPIC WINTER GAMES

Year	Countries	Medal Events	Male	Female	Total	TOP 3 COUNTRIES
1976	12	28	64	14	78	1. SUI 2. GER 3. AUT
1980	15	22	98	34	132	1. AUT 2. SUI 3. USA
1984	21	56	150	44	194	1. AUT 2. USA 3. GER
1988	21	43	167	36	203	1. AUT 2. GER 3. USA
1992	23	48	165	47	212	1. USA 2. GER 3. AUT
1994	24	66	175	45	220	1. USA 2. GER 3. FRA
1998	26	54	179	50	229	1. USA 2. ESP 3. SUI
2002	30	53	145	49	194	1. USA 2. AUT 3. GER
2006	30	24	146	44	190	1. GER 2. FRA 3. USA
2010	37	30	135	56	191	1. GER 2. CAN 3. SVK
2014	40	32	158	56	214	1. RUS 2. GER 3. FRA
2018	33	30	101	40	141	1. SVK 2. FRA 3. GER

 

ALL-TIME PARALYMPIC ALPINE SKIING MEDALS TABLE 

RANK	COUNTRY	GOLD	SILVER	BRONZE	TOTAL
1	USA	91	96	70	257
2	Austria	90	88	91	269
3	Switzerland	56	39	36	131
4	Germany	45	39	24	108
5	France	39	41	34	114

 

TOP 5 MALE PARALYMPIC MEDALLISTS

RANK	ATHLETE	YEARS COMPETING	GOLD	SILVER	BRONZE	TOTAL
1	Gerd Schoenfelder (GER)	1992-2010	16	4	2	22
2	Rolf Heinzmann (SUI)	1980-2002	12	2	0	14
3	Martin Braxenthaler (GER)	1998-2010	10	1	1	12
4	Hans Burn (SUI)	1988-2002	6	5	3	14
5	Greg Mannino (USA)	1988-1998	6	4	2	12

 

TOP 5 FEMALE PARALYMPIC MEDALLISTS

RANK	ATHLETE	YEARS COMPETING	GOLD	SILVER	BRONZE	TOTAL
1	Reinhild Moeller (GER)	1980-2006	16	2	1	19
2	Sarah Will (USA)	1992-2002	12	1	0	13
3	Henrieta Farkasova (SVK)	2010-	9	2	1	12
4	Lauren Woolstencroft (CAN)	2002-2010	8	1	1	10
5	Marie Bochet (FRA)	2014-	8	0	0	8