Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow. Variations of purpose include basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS).
The FIS Alpine Ski World Cup is the top international circuit of alpine skiing competitions, launched in 1966 by a group of ski racing friends and experts which included French journalist Serge Lang and the alpine ski team directors from France and the USA. It was soon backed by International Ski Federation president Marc Hodler during the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships 1966 at Portillo, Chile, and became an official FIS event in the spring of 1967 after the FIS Congress at Beirut, Lebanon.
Bojan Križaj is a Slovenian, back then Yugoslavian, former alpine skier. During his international career he competed for the then-existing Yugoslavia. He competed at three Winter Olympics.
Kjetil André Aamodt is a former World Cup alpine ski racer from Norway, a champion in the Olympics, World Championships, and World Cup. He is one of the most successful alpine ski racers from Norway.
Lasse Kjus is a former World Cup alpine ski racer from Norway. He won the overall World Cup title twice, an Olympic gold medal, and several World Championships. His combined career total of 16 Olympic and World Championship medals ranks second all-time behind fellow Norwegian Kjetil André Aamodt.
Ivica Kostelić is a Croatian former alpine ski racer. He specialized in slalom and combined, but was also one of the few alpine World Cup ski racers able to score points in all disciplines. He is the brother of skiing champion Janica Kostelić. In his career he was coached by his father Ante Kostelić, as well as by Kristian Ghedina and Tomislav Krstičević.
The FIS Alpine World Ski Championships is an alpine skiing competition organized by the International Ski Federation (FIS).
Benjamin Raich is an Austrian former World Cup champion alpine ski racer and Olympic gold medalist. With 14 medals won at Winter Olympics and World Championships, 36 World Cup race victories, one first place and five second places in the World Cup overall ranking, three victories of the slalom World Cup, three victories of the combined World Cup, two victories of the giant slalom World Cup and the highest score of career World Cup points, he is considered among the best alpine racers in World Cup history.
Piero "Pierino" Gros is a former World Cup alpine ski racer from northwestern Italy. He won the gold medal in slalom at the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, and was the World Cup overall champion in 1974.
Theodore Sharp Ligety is a retired American alpine ski racer, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, and an entrepreneur, having cofounded Shred Optics. Ligety won the combined event at the 2006 Olympics in Turin and the giant slalom race at the 2014 Olympics in Sochi. He is also a five-time World Cup champion in giant slalom. Ligety won the gold medal in the giant slalom at the 2011 World Championships. He successfully defended his world title in giant slalom in 2013 in Schladming, Austria, where he also won an unexpected gold medal in the super-G and a third gold medal in the super combined.
Gustav Thöni is an Italian retired alpine ski racer.
Sport is considered a national pastime in Finland and many Finns visit different sporting events regularly. Pesäpallo is the national sport of Finland, although the most popular forms of sport in terms of television viewers and media coverage are ice hockey and Formula One. In spectator attendance, harness racing comes right after ice hockey in popularity.
Thomas Sykora is a former alpine skier from Austria.
Elisabeth Görgl is a retired World Cup alpine ski racer from Austria.
Franz Zingerle was the Austrian alpine skier and world champion. Zingerle became a world downhill champion in 1935.
The 44th World Cup season began on 24 October 2009, in Sölden, Austria, and concluded on 14 March 2010, at the World Cup finals in Garmisch, Germany.
Marcel Hirscher is an Austrian former World Cup alpine ski racer. Hirscher made his World Cup debut in March 2007. He competed primarily in slalom and giant slalom, as well as combined and occasionally in super G. Winner of a record eight consecutive World Cup titles, Hirscher has also won 11 medals at the Alpine Skiing World Championships, seven of them gold, a silver medal in slalom at the 2014 Winter Olympics, and two gold medals in the combined and giant slalom at the 2018 Winter Olympics. Due to his record number of overall titles and many years of extreme dominance of both slalom and giant slalom, he is considered by many, including his former rivals Henrik Kristoffersen, Kjetil Jansrud and Alexis Pinturault, to be the best alpine skier in history. He won a total of 67 World Cup races, ranking second on the male all-time list.
Federica Brignone is an Italian World Cup alpine ski racer. She competes in all alpine disciplines, with a focus on giant slalom and super-G. Brignone won the World Cup overall title in 2020, becoming the first Italian female to achieve this feat. She is also an Olympic and World Championship medalist. At the 2022 Winter Olympics, she won a silver medal in the giant slalom and a bronze in the combined.
Henrik Kristoffersen is a Norwegian World Cup alpine ski racer, World Champion, and Olympic medalist. He specializes in the technical events of slalom and giant slalom.
The International Ski Federation (FIS) Alpine Ski World Cup was the premier circuit for alpine skiing competition. The inaugural season launched in January 1967, and the 2018–19 season marks the 53rd consecutive year for the FIS World Cup.
