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spt_oly_xcountry_skiing.sTitle = "Event Essentials: Cross-country skiing";
spt_oly_xcountry_skiing.appDeck = "The sport has evolved into a pair of events: classical and freestyle";
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spt_oly_xcountry_skiing[i-1].body = "Cross-country skiing first appeared in the Olympic Winter Games at the inaugural Chamonix Games in 1924. From its Olympic debut through the 1984 Sarajevo Games, the sport looked very much the way it did in 1900, when the first official race was held at the Holmenkollen ski festival in Norway.But like all sports, cross-country skiing has evolved. At the 1988 Calgary Games, the Olympic world was introduced to freestyle — a new, faster technique that closely resembles skating across a sheet of ice.
So today, there are two distinct types of Olympic cross-country skiing events: classical and freestyle.
The classical technique has been used since the first ski festival more than 100 years ago. Skiers push forward with a diagonal stride in prepared tracks.
In freestyle, or \"skating,\" skiers have no prepared tracks and propel themselves similar to a speed skater.
Skating evolved in the 1970s from a technique coined the \"Siitonen Step\" after a Finnish policeman named Pauli Siitonen. Siitonen would keep one ski in the prepared track and use the other ski to push his body forward. His fatigue would cause him to change legs — and thus the skating technique was born.
Skating originally gained favor with the ultra-distance racers. As they broke time barriers with the new technique, people took notice.
Soon skiers found that skating was advantageous for shorter distances as well. Early studies found that skating was almost 10 percent faster than the classical technique.
But as its popularity grew, so did its opposition. Officials from traditional cross-country powerhouses such as Norway, Finland and the Soviet Union began taking measures to limit skating.
Marshals patrolled the course declaring no-skating zones, beams were set up to stop the pushing-off movement of the skier and nets were even set up in sections.
The International Ski Federation (FIS) ruled on the subject in late 1984, making way for the present day competition. FIS decided the sport was big enough for two types of races: classical and freestyle.
Revolutionary at first, the freestyle technique has changed the sport and attracted a different class of skiers. While cross-country skiing still features marathon races of endurance, the people of the 10th century who used skis for transportation would hardly recognize it.";
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In classical races, skiers use the traditional straight-striding technique, called a \"diagonal stride,\" and do not deviate from prepared parallel tracks. The power of the stride propels the skier. The form required for classic skiing resembles that which is used on a typical cross-country exercise machine. From 1924-84, only the classical technique was used in Olympic competitions.
At the Turin Games, four events will be exclusively classical: men's 15-kilometer, men's team sprint, women's 10km and women's team sprint. Also, the first leg of both men's and women's pursuit and the first two legs of the relays will be classical.";
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spt_oly_xcountry_skiing[i-1].body = "
The freestyle technique has no restrictions. The athletes do not keep their skis within narrow tracks but instead push off with both legs to surge forward and propel their bodies. Freestyle races, which almost always are faster than classical races, have been part of the Olympics since 1988.
At the Turin Games, four events will be exclusively freestyle: men's and women's 1.5km sprint, men's 30km mass start and women's 15km mass start. Also, the second leg of the men's and women's pursuit and the final two legs of the relays will be freestyle.";
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Since freestyle's inception, skiers have faced challenges that the different techniques bring to training, fitness and ski preparation.
Both styles are physically demanding for the skier. But athletes point out that the two techniques affect different muscle groups and require different training methods.
There are also differences in equipment. Freestyle skis are shorter and stiffer than classical skis and freestyle boots are more rigid and have more ankle support. Also, freestyle poles are longer and stiffer than classical poles.
Another factor is ski wax. Waxing skis for classical competitions is more difficult. Skiers face a delicate balance between glide and kick. The wrong mixture can leave a skier handling the climbing part of the course fine but barely moving over the flats, or vice versa.";
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The grueling Olympic track at Pragelato Plan will test a skier, no matter the technique. The course is made up of 2 circuits: the first known as the \"red\" circuit with a length of approximately 6,200 meters, the second known as the \"yellow\" circuit of about 3,800 meters.
Conditions will also play a factor in the two styles. The harder the snow, the better competitors will fare in freestyle. But if there is a lot of snow, many skiers favor classical.
Not all skiers have adjusted to the evolution of the sport. While all compete in classical and freestyle competitions, most still have their favorites. However, with both styles so prominent, skiers can't afford to specialize in one over the other, as is the case in other sports such as alpine skiing.
A true test at the 2006 Games will be the combined pursuit, which pits skiers in a two-race event — one classical race and one freestyle race. The best all-around skiers will be rewarded here.
Canadian Beckie Scott, the first North American woman to collect an Olympic cross-country gold medal at the 2002 Games in Utah, says that with the proper training, competitors can excel in both styles these days. \"I think both techniques require a lot of strength, a lot of speed, a lot of endurance, so if you build for that, you'll be better in both disciplines.\""; spt_oly_xcountry_skiing[i++] = new Array("spt_1212_xcountry","Vote","","","","", "lv", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", ""); // END editorial data