Giant Slalom
Giant slalom is a skiing and snowboarding sport of the alpine skiing discipline which is similar to slalom in the sense that athletes have to navigate through a fixed set of gates. The difference between slalom and giant slalom is that the gates used in giant slalom are spaced farther apart from each other than in slalom.
The course used for giant slalom competitions must have a vertical drop between 250–450m for men, and 250–400m for women. A total of 56-70 gates are used for men's events and 46–58 are used for women. The minimum length of skis used for giant slalom has to be185 cm for men and 180 cm for women. A maximum stand height of 55mm is also enforced.
downhill skiingGiant slalom, similar to slalom, is a technical event, where athletes are judged based on technical aspects of turns rather than speed. In competitions, each rider is allowed two runs down the course, and are awarded points. The rider with the most cumulative points for the two runs combined is declared as the winner.
Giant slalom is a very popular winter sport,and has been a part of the Winter Olympics since 1952 and the World Championships since 1950.
Similar Sports
- Super Giant Slalom (better known as Super-G) — an alpine downhill skiing event like giant slalom but the gates to ski through are further apart.
- Slalom Skiing — an alpine skiing discipline that involves skiing downhill through gates, with the gates closer together therefore tighter turns than in Giant Slalom or Super-G.
- Ski Cross — multiple downhill skiers race head-to-head on a course including big jumps, rollers and high-banked turns.
- Downhill Skiing — participants slide down a snow-covered hill using skis with fixed bindings.
Related Pages
- about Alpine Skiing — including slalom, giant slalom, super giant slalom and downhill
- Complete list of sports
- The Encyclopedia of Sports
- Alpine Skiing at the Winter Olympics
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