History of Skiing

Skiing is one of the oldest forms of human transport.  Archaeologists have found stone carvings in Sweden and Norway. These carvings show pictures of people on skis. This dates back to as far as 5000BC. Originally skiing was used as a form of transport over long distances when walking would be too slow. The word skiing originally comes from the icelandic word ‘scidh’ which means snowshoe or piece of wood. Skiing was also used to aid hunting and military technique. The first downhill Salom races were first introduced in Europe around the 1920’s and the first World Championship was organised in 1931



Skiing in its early years
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As the popularity of skiing has grown the technique and equipment has adapted. In Alpine Skiing the boot used becomes mounted to the ski at the heel and toe. This gives more control to the skier and allows skiers to tackle steeper slopes at higher speeds. In the 1930’s skiing really became a popular past time in Europe. The addition of ski lifts helped eliminate the challenge of hiking up the mountains. The first ski resorts were developed in Austria and Switzerland after the 2^nd world war. This was to allow everyone to experience this up and coming sport.