So what is Freestyle?  

 

Martin Explains.... Freestyle History
Freestyle in the Olympics

Freestyle Terminology

  
  Freestyle applied to skiing covers the events of Moguls (Bumps & Jumps), Acro, Aerials, Big Air, Half Pipe and Ski across. All are FIS (Federation de Institute Ski) disciplines except for Acro and Big air. Moguls and Aerials are featured in the winter Olympics.  
 

 

Moguls (Bumps & Jumps) - Mogul skiers race down a 27-degree slope over large uniform bumps called moguls.
The length of the run is between 230 and 270 metres with bumps up to 1.2m high (click thumbnail). Mogul scoring is a combination of judging jumps and bumps and speed. In a good run, shoulders remain parallel to the finish line, turns should be quick and short, and skis should not leave the snow surface, except at pre-determined jumps. To perform aerial manoeuvres, skiers hit two large jumps, placed one-third and two-thirds of the way down the run. The moguls' competition consists of a run down a bump-laden course with two jumps.
The Olympic format is a one-run elimination round followed by a one-run final. The skier with the highest score in the final round wins.
Due to the flexibility needed for freestyle skiing, ski suits must allow the athlete to move freely and easily. For the mogul event, the colour of the kneepad on a ski suit is often different from the rest of the outfit. This is to draw the judge's attention to the knees, which are the focal point of the skier's twists and turns. Ski poles are used to help the skier turn, accelerate and maintain balance. There is no minimum ski length although aerial skis are lighter and shorter to maximise a skier's control. Like all forms of skiing, freestyle can be dangerous and hard plastic helmets are worn.

  
 

 

Scoring split

50% marks for quality of turns i.e. snow contact, aggression, line etc.
25% marks on speed
25% marks on height and difficulty of air.

  
 

 

Acro - Tricks and spins on the flat to music. Judged on difficulty and artistry.

  
 
Aerials - inverted jumps that are scary beyond belief. Combinations of double and triple twisting somersaults and more.		  
 

 

Big Air - Flat spins, misty flips, 1080-degree rotations anything goes including landing backwards. Again judged on difficulty and style. Uses twin tip skis that are also generally excellent for all mountains playing.

  
 

 

Halfpipe - 100 m of bliss with jump after jump of sheer joy off of the lip. Again, upright, invert and fakie (backwards). You've guessed it - judged on difficulty and style.

  
 

 

Ski-across - Four or more skiers start at the top of a course that owes more to a bob sleigh run than piste. Whoever stays in the course and gets to the bottom first wins. Did I mention the occasional mammoth jump just to put you off?


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Freestyle History

 

  
  The three original disciplines of Freestyle (Acro, Moguls & Aerials) grew out of hot-dogging; a single run would include bump skiing, aerials and Acro tricks. The first competition took place in 1971 in the USA, sponsored by K2. Awards were given for fastest run, most unique etc. Unfortunately as the awards given rose in value, the competitors tried more and more varied and dangerous manoeuvres. After a spate of injuries, including a broken back the competition was broken up into three component parts - the modern three disciplines of Freestyle skiing. From that moment on inverted aerials were no longer allowed in moguls skiing until season 2003/04. Mogul skiing became a fast success drawing huge crowds, most coming to join the party atmosphere, and watch the big crashes. The draw of big crowds and media interest did not go un-noticed by the International Ski Federation (now know as FIS), who in 1980, decided to bring it under their wing, and start the Freestyle World Cup Circuit.

In 1986 the first freestyle World Championships were held in Tignes France. This proved to be a big hit, Europe went into a freestyle frenzy, and even Ski Sunday, who traditionally only covered alpine racing dedicating a whole show to the competition.


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 Freestyle In The Olympics

  
 

 

It seemed that mogul skiing was bound for Olympic competition, when in 1988 moguls were featured in Calgary as an Olympic demonstration sport. Sure enough in 1992 at the Albertville Olympics Edgar Grospiron won the first ever Gold medal in mogul skiing in front of a record crowd.

Media coverage of mogul skiing has become increasingly impressive worldwide. At the 1994 Olympic Games in Lillehammer close to two billion viewers watched the event, with ten million Britons watching the BBC coverage. In 1998 Nagano Japan, tickets to the Mogul event were so much in demand that only the ice hockey final was more subscribed! For the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City USA it was reported that the Mogul event was sold out months in advanced. The Gold medal went to the Finnish Janne Lahtela (27.97), Silver to USA's Travis Mayer (27.59) and Richard Gay (26.91) from France beating USA's Jonny Moseley (with his famous roll) to the Bronze medal by 0.13!

Women's Gold went to Kari Traa of Norway (25.94), Silver to Shannon Bahrke of USA (25.06) and the bronze was hotly contested with Tae Satoya from Japan beating Canada's Jennifer Heil to the medal by 00.01 of a point with a score of 24.85!

Mogul skiing will always be one of the most watched Olympic sports. I believe that the key to its popularity is that both the skiing and non-skiing public can relate to what a feat it is just to get to the bottom of the slope. If mogul skiing were a Hollywood movie, it would be an action packed, emotional, roller-coaster ride of thrills and spills, featuring death defying stunts and some pretty neat special effects.


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