Sport Description

Combining elements of surfing, skateboarding and skiing, snowboard — one of the fastest growing sports — is a recent addition to the Olympic Winter Games.

The first official snowboard competition was held in Colorado in 1981.

Two snowboard events were introduced at the Nagano 1998 Winter Games — halfpipe and individual giant slalom. Parallel giant slalom replaced individual giant slalom at the Salt Lake City 2002 Olympic Winter Games and snowboard cross was introduced in 2006, at the Torino Olympic Winter Games.

How It Works

In the halfpipe, one snowboarder at a time performs a routine of acrobatic jumps, twists and tricks on the inside of a half-cylinder-shaped snow tube or ramp while moving from one side of the halfpipe to the other.

The riders are judged on the height and style of their tricks.

In the parallel giant slalom, two snowboarders race head-to-head down a course, turning through a series of gates. The fastest goes on to the next round. The top finishers compete in a total of nine runs.

In snowboard cross, four racers start in a pack down a course, racing against each other over rolling terrain and a series of jumps and ramps. The fastest two racers from each heat move on to the next round.