Skiing is known to be a basic means of transport in Northern Europe for 3000 to 4000 years. As a competitive sport, skiing had its origin in the Scandinavian countries. In the beginning of this century skiing spread out throughout Europe and in the 1950s skiing became popular in North America. In the last decade it has been the fastest growing outdoor recreational activities in the USA, with 9% of the American population over 12 years of age participating in skiing.

Alpine Skiing includes 5 different events: Slalom, Giant slalom, Super Giant, Downhill, and Combined. Usually skiers participate in more than one Alpine event. The 4 different disciplines show differences in speed, turning radius of the skis and length of the course.

The Downhill (D) course follows the fall line of the hill. The average speed for the downhill is 70 mph with speeds of 90 mph in steep sections of the course. The downhill skiers try to maintain an aerodynamic "tuck" position for the duration of the race, lasting 2 to 3 minutes.

The Super Giant (SG) is a combination of downhill and giant slalom with duration of about 80 to 90 seconds. These two events are termed "speed events".

Whereas Giant Slalom (GS) requires the most technical performance, in contrast to downhill, the gates are closer together, but not directly in the fall line demanding carved turns through the whole race. Average speed in GS is about 50 mph and the race has a duration of 60 to 90 seconds.

Slalom (SL) races are on steep terrain with the gates close together. Because the slalom skier is constantly turning across the fall line, the average speed is lower than in GS, with 15 to 30 mph. The SL requires the most agility compared to the other events. GS and SL are termed the "technical events".

The alpine combined consists of a shorter downhill course and a slalom race.

Alpine skiing requires aerobic and anaerobic power, muscular strength, high and complex motor skills including quickness, agility, balance, flexibility and co-ordination in addition to psychological properties and for the racers also courage to negociate the fastest line which on many occasions does not leave much, if any, room for a mistake.