Slalom is an alpine skiing and alpine snowboarding discipline, involving skiing between poles or gates. These are spaced more closely than those in giant slalom, super giant slalom and downhill, necessitating quicker and shorter turns. Internationally, the sport is contested at the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships, and at the Olympic Winter Games.
Giant slalom (GS) is an alpine skiing and alpine snowboarding discipline. It involves skiing between sets of poles ("gates") spaced at a greater distance from each other than in slalom but less than in Super-G.
Super giant slalom, or super-G, is a racing discipline of alpine skiing. Along with the faster downhill, it is regarded as a "speed" event, in contrast to the technical events giant slalom and slalom. It debuted as an official World Cup event during the 1983 season and was added to the official schedule of the World Championships in 1987 and the Winter Olympics in 1988.
Samuel Bode Miller is an American former World Cup alpine ski racer. He is an Olympic and World Championship gold medalist, a two-time overall World Cup champion in 2005 and 2008, and the most successful male American alpine ski racer of all time. He is also considered one of the greatest World Cup racers of all time with 33 race victories and being one of five men to win World Cup events in all five disciplines. He is the only skier with five or more victories in each discipline. In 2008, Miller and Lindsey Vonn won the overall World Cup titles for the first U.S. sweep in 25 years.
Albania sent a delegation to compete at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy between 10–26 February 2006. This was the nation's first appearance at a Winter Olympic Games, having previously participated several times in the Summer Olympics. The delegation consisted of one alpine skier, Erjon Tola, who competed in three events. His best finish was 35th in the giant slalom.
India sent a delegation to compete at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy from 10–26 February 2006. This was the nation's seventh appearance in a Winter Olympic Games. The Indian delegation consisted of four athletes, two in alpine skiing, one in cross-country skiing, and one in luge. Their best performance in any event was 25th by luger Shiva Keshavan in the men's singles.
Ireland sent a delegation to compete at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy from 10–26 February 2006. This was Ireland's fourth appearance at a Winter Olympic Games. The Irish delegation to Turin consisted of four athletes, two alpine skiers, one cross-country skier, and one skeleton racer. The best performance by any Irish competitor at these Olympics was 20th, by David Connolly in the men's skeleton race.
Kyrgyzstan a delegation to compete in the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy from 10–26 February 2006. This was Kyrgyzstan's fourth appearance at a Winter Olympic Games. The delegation consisted of a single alpine skier, first-time Olympian Ivan Borisov. His best performance was 41st in the men's giant slalom, and he was disqualified from the men's slalom.
Cyprus sent a delegation to compete in the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy from 10–26 February 2006. This was Cyprus' eighth appearance at a Winter Olympic Games. The Cypriot delegation consisted of one alpine skier, Theodoros Christodoulou. His best performance was 34th in the men's giant slalom.
The Republic of Macedonia sent a delegation to compete at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy from 10–26 February 2006. This was Macedonia's third appearance at a Winter Olympic Games. The delegation consisted of three athletes; Ivana Ivčevska and Gjorgi Markovski in alpine skiing, and Darko Damjanovski in cross-country skiing. Their best performance in any event was 40th, by Ivčevska in the women's giant slalom.
Madagascar competed in the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. The country's participation at the Games marked its Winter Olympics debut, although it had competed in the Summer Olympics since 1964. The delegation consisted of a single alpine skier, Mathieu Razanakolona, who did not win any medals.
Senegal competed at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. This marked the fourth appearance by the nation at a Winter Olympics, and the first time it had not been represented at one by alpine skier Lamine Guèye. Instead, Leyti Seck was chosen as the country's sole representative. He did not win any medals, but would return to represent his country again at the 2010 Winter Olympics.
The slalom competition is shorter than the giant slalom, but is otherwise similar in emphasizing maneuverability. Slalom has been a part of all the Winter Olympics since 1936, although it was a part of the alpine combination that year. Only the downhill event has a longer history at the Winter Olympics. The men's slalom took place on 25 February and was the last of the Olympic alpine skiing competitions.
Paralympic alpine skiing is an adaptation of alpine skiing for athletes with a disability. The sport evolved from the efforts of disabled veterans in Germany and Austria during and after the Second World War. The sport is governed by the International Paralympic Committee Sports Committee. The primary equipment used includes outrigger skis, sit-skis, and mono-skis. Para-alpine skiing disciplines include the Downhill, Super-G, Giant Slalom, Slalom, Super Combined and Snowboard.
Albania sent a delegation to compete at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, held between 12–28 February 2010. This was Albania's second appearance at a Winter Olympic Games. The Albanian delegation consisted of a single alpine skier, Erjon Tola, whose best finish between all his events was 48th.
Morocco competed in the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The country's participation at Vancouver marked its fifth appearance at a Winter Olympics since its debut in 1968; no athlete had won any medals. The 2010 delegation consisted of a single athlete competing in alpine skiing, Samir Azzimani, who was also the nation's flag bearer in the Parade of Nations. Azzimani brought a group of schoolchildren from a suburb of Metz, France, which had seen rioting in January that year. Azzimani was one of three African skiers at the Games, and did not win any medals.
Armenia sent a delegation to compete at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada from 12 to 28 February 2010. This marked the nation's fifth appearance at a Winter Olympics as an independent country. The Armenian delegation consisted of four athletes, two in alpine skiing and two in cross-country skiing. The team's best finish in any event was a 70th place mark by Sergey Mikayelyan in the men's 15 kilometre freestyle cross-country event.
Armenia sent a delegation to compete at the 2014 Winter Paralympics in Sochi, Russia from 7–16 March 2014. This was the nation's fifth appearance at a Winter Paralympic Games. The delegation consisted of a single alpine skier, Mher Avanesyan, who lost both arms as a child after coming into contact with a high-voltage electrical wire. In the men's standing slalom he came in 34th place out of 35 competitors who finished the race, and he failed to finish the giant slalom.
Bosnia and Herzegovina sent a delegation to compete at the 2014 Winter Paralympics in Sochi, Russia from 7–16 March 2014. This was the second time the country had participated in a Winter Paralympic Games. The delegation consisted of two alpine skiers, Senad Turkovic and Ilma Kazazic. Neither of the two finished any of their events.
Greece sent a delegation to compete at the 2014 Winter Paralympics in Sochi, Russia from 7–16 March 2014. This was Greece's third appearance at a Winter Paralympic Games. Their only athlete was alpine skier Efthymios Kalaras. He suffered a spinal cord injury two decades before these Paralympics, and was a returning Paralympic silver medalist from the 2004 Summer Paralympics in the discus throw. He finished 22nd in the sitting giant slalom, nearly a minute behind the gold medal time.
