This was published 12 years ago
Sochi Winter Sports: Snowboard
Aussie to watch:
Australia’s Torah Bright is the reigning female Olympic Halfpipe champion and will be going for gold again.
Fast facts:
Snowboard may be the Winter Olympics' newest discipline, but it is also one of its most popular. The sport was developed in the United States in the 1960s and introduced to the Winter Games in 1988. Since then, it has boomed around the world and will be one of the most-watched events at Sochi.
Fast facts:
While the Halfpipe and Giant Slalom were the only events offered to athletes in 1988, Sochi will see the reintroduction of the Parallel Slalom and Parallel Giant Slalom, the return of Snowboard Cross and the introduction of the highly anticipated Snowboard Slopestyle.
Fast facts:
The Halfpipe is a giant, man-made structure that is carved with specialised equipment to form a seven metre deep pipe that extends 200 metres. Competitors can effectively do what they want during a run, performing routines of acrobatic jumps, flips and twists.
Fast facts:
Snowboard Cross is fast, furious and highly entertaining. You could liken it to a BMX race on ice, as competitors hurtle down a course of jumps, straights and sharp bends in a race to the finish line.
Fast facts:
Forty men and 24 women will compete in Snowboard Cross, with individual runs for each athlete before they are ranked for their head to head racing.
New event:
Like Snowboard Cross, Snowboard Slopestyle promises plenty of entertainement. Slopestyle courses combine rails, hips and a variety of jumps that allow riders to get big air and show off their best tricks.
New event:
There are three phases of the competition – qualification, semi-final and final, with athletes taking two runs in each phase with the highest scoring run being counted.
Fast facts:
The Parallel Slalom and Parallel Giant Slalom see two riders racing down the same slope on parallel courses, outlined with gates and flags. The difference between events is with regard to the distance between each of the gates, with a greater distance in Giant Slalom allowing for greater speeds.
