Super giant slalom , or super-G , is a racing discipline of alpine skiing . Along with the faster downhill , it is regarded as a "speed" event, in contrast to the technical events giant slalom and slalom . It debuted as an official World Cup event during the 1983 season and was added to the official schedule of the World Championships in 1987 and the Winter Olympics in 1988 .
42-474: Much like downhill, a super-G course consists of widely set gates that racers must pass through. The course is set so that skiers must turn more than in downhill, though the speeds are still much higher than in giant slalom (hence the name). Each athlete only has one run to clock the best time. In the Olympics, super-G courses are usually set on the same slopes as the downhill, but with a lower starting point. Super-G
84-538: A slalom won by Heinrich Messner of Austria. Jean-Claude Killy of France and Nancy Greene of Canada were the overall winners for the first two seasons. Competitors attempt to achieve the best time in four disciplines: slalom , giant slalom , super G , and downhill . The fifth event, the combined , employs the downhill and slalom. The World Cup originally included only slalom, giant slalom, and downhill races. Combined events (calculated using results from selected downhill and slalom races) were included starting with
126-460: A 9 kilogram crystal globe. Sub-prizes are also awarded in each individual race discipline, with a smaller 3.5 kg crystal globe. Since 1967 , the big crystal globe has been awarded for the overall title. From the beginning to 1971–72 , discipline titles were awarded with medals. Statistically, those titles have the same value as the small crystal globes, which first appeared for discipline titles in slalom , giant slalom and downhill in
168-576: A Gold medal in the event at the 2022 Winter Olympics . Katja Seizinger of Germany won five season titles in the 1990s, with 16 World Cup wins in the discipline. Neither Vonn and Seizinger have won gold in the super-G at the Olympics (both won a bronze) while Gut-Behrami has. However all three of them have won a world title , Vonn in 2009 , Gut-Behrami in 2021 and Seizinger in 1993 . Renate Götschl of Austria won 17 World Cup events in super-G, three season titles, and two medals (silver and bronze) in
210-510: A champion in the Olympics , World Championships , and World Cup. He is one of the most successful alpine ski racers from Norway. Born in Oslo to Finn Aamodt (former head coach of Norway's alpine skiing team), Aamodt is the only alpine skier to win 8 Olympic medals, and has won 5 World Championship gold medals as well as 21 individual World Cup events. Described as an all-round alpine skier, Aamodt participated in all alpine skiing disciplines in
252-705: A crash in the downhill. Maier's proficiency in super-G was attributed to his thorough course inspection and his aggressive course tactics; he opted for the most direct and dangerous line down the hill. A serious motorcycle accident in August 2001 nearly resulted in an amputation of his lower right leg and sidelined him for the 2002 season, including the 2002 Olympics . After his return to the World Cup circuit in January 2003 , Maier won eight more World Cup super-G events and his fifth season title in 2004. Aksel Lund Svindal of Norway
294-494: A given season are marked "NA"): Updated: 24 November 2024 As of 23 November 2024. Based on ski-database super ranking system (since 1966), this scoring system is calculated using points from three categories: Olympic Games , World Championships , and World Cup (overall titles, discipline titles and individual top ten results). Parallel slaloms from 1976 to 1991 counted for Nations Cup. There were no limitations regarding
336-590: A month later in early January 1983, with consecutive events at Verbier , Switzerland. The first winner was Irene Epple of West Germany , and Cindy Nelson of the United States won the next day on a different course. These were the only two races for women in super-G during the 1983 season; the men had three. The event was not universally embraced during its early years, which included a boycott by two-time defending overall champion Phil Mahre in December 1982. For
378-433: A number of points for each place in a race, but the procedure for doing so and the often-arcane method used to calculate the annual champions has varied greatly over the years. Originally, points were awarded only to the top ten finishers in each race, with 25 points for the winner, 20 for second, 15 for third, 11 for fourth, 8 for fifth, 6 for sixth, 4 for seventh, then decreasing by one point for each lower place. To determine
420-453: A run on either course. The best combined times moved the fastest racer to the second round through bracket preference protocols. From the second round, skiers the head-to-head competitions were held over one run only, with the faster skier from the previous round granted course selection between the 'red-right' or 'blue-left' course. At about one-third the time of a standard GS event, top performers/finalists were able to make multiple runs without
462-499: A safe in his father's home. The five-time world champion and winner of four Olympic gold medals later revealed they were recovered by an anonymous helper over the internet. Aamodt announced the conclusion of his career on live television on 6 January 2007, with hundreds of fellow athletes in attendance, at the Norwegian Sports Gala ( Idrettsgallaen ) where he had been selected as awardee of the year for 2006. Aamodt now runs
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#1732848684850504-491: A total of two races (one in the men's category and one in the women's category) and it was in 2002/03 season. The points were added together with slalom races. Introduced by the International Ski Federation to the World Cup as a spectator-friendly event in late 2015, the parallel giant slalom competition, or shortened parallel-G , joining the parallel slalom, is intended to lure more speed specialists into
546-546: Is his 231 World Cup top-ten results, 9 ahead of Benjamin Raich. By winning the super-G race at the 2006 Olympics , Aamodt became the first male alpine skier to win four gold medals in the Olympics . ( Toni Sailer and Jean-Claude Killy both swept the three alpine events at a single Olympics, and Alberto Tomba won three gold medals over two Olympics.) Aamodt had 19 Olympic and World Championship medals stolen from him. The medals were taken in August 2003 by burglars who broke into
588-629: Is second on the list with 17 wins in World Cup super-G races, Kjetil Jansrud third with his 13 wins. Svindal won Olympic gold in 2010 and his fifth season title in 2014 Pirmin Zurbriggen won four consecutive season titles ( 1987 – 90 ) and was the first world champion of this discipline in 1987. Kjetil André Aamodt of Norway, a triple gold medalist in Olympic super-G races, winning in 1992 , 2002 and 2006 . Aamodt won five World Cup races and two world championship medals (silver and bronze) in
630-447: The 1974–75 season, while the Super G was added for the 1982–83 season. The current scoring system was implemented in the 1991–92 season. For every race points are awarded to the top 30 finishers: 100 points to the winner, 80 for second, 60 for third, winding down to 1 point for 30th place. The racer with the most points at the end of the season in mid-March wins the cup, represented by
672-406: The 1977–78 . In super-G , the small globe has been awarded since 1985–86 . For super-g races in the three seasons previous, points were added and calculated in the giant slalom ranking. The World Cup is held annually, and is considered the premier competition for alpine ski racing after the quadrennial Winter Olympics . Many consider the World Cup to be a more valuable title than the Olympics or
714-450: The World Cup and World Championships , and is one of only five male alpine skiers to have won a World Cup race in all five disciplines. Aamodt's combined career total of twenty World Championship and Olympic medals is an all-time best. He is the second-youngest male alpine skier to win an Olympic gold medal (age 20 in 1992 ; Toni Sailer was two months younger in 1956 ). Until 2014 , he
756-518: The NorAm and Europa Cup. The Chief Race Director of the inaugural event at Alta Badia, Markus Waldner, on 20 December 2015 stated that "great performances" and "head-to-head fights" between the best giant slalom racers is the goal of the competition. The course for the first race was very compact at about 20–22 seconds duration, or about one-third of a normal GS run. The pace and cadence was the same as Giant slalom, not standard Slalom. Gates were set at roughly
798-422: The World Cup points valuation ( i . e ., Grenoble 1968 and Val Gardena 1970 ); this was abandoned after 1970, mainly due to the limited number of racers per nation who are permitted to take part in these events. Beginning with the 1971–72 season (the sixth season), the number of results counted was increased to five in each discipline. The formula used to determine the overall winner varied almost every year over
840-668: The alpine ski team directors from France (Honore Bonnet) and the USA ( Bob Beattie ). It was soon backed by International Ski Federation president Marc Hodler during the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships 1966 at Portillo, Chile , and became an official FIS event in the spring of 1967 after the FIS Congress at Beirut , Lebanon. The inaugural World Cup race was held on 5 January 1967 in Berchtesgaden , West Germany ,
882-404: The best 5 results in the original disciplines ( slalom , giant slalom , and downhill ) plus the best three results in combined . When Super G events were introduced for the 1982–83 season, the results were included with giant slalom for the first three seasons, before a separate Cup for the discipline was awarded starting in 1985–86 and the top 3 Super G results were counted toward
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#1732848684850924-648: The biennial World Championships , since it requires a competitor to ski at an extremely high level in several disciplines throughout the season, and not just in one race. Races are hosted primarily at ski resorts in the Alps in Europe, with regular stops in Scandinavia , North America, and east Asia, but a few races have also been held in the Southern Hemisphere. World Cup competitions have been hosted in 25 countries around
966-492: The course drop in meters (6% for Olympic Winter Games, FIS World Ski Championships and FIS World Cups). In an attempt to increase safety, the 2004 season saw the FIS impose minimum ski lengths for the super-G for the first time: to 205 cm (80.7 in) for men and 200 cm (78.7 in) for women. The minimum turning radius was increased to 45 m (148 ft) for the 2014 season. Men The following table contains
1008-480: The day prior at the same venue. Overlapping qualifications allowed the sponsors to invite lower ranked participants to fill in gaps, as needed, and to replace individuals who declined to participate. Points were awarded and accumulated according to current standards for the race season in all relevant categories: the GS discipline, Overall and Nations Cup. The field was filled with thirty-two first round participants, each getting
1050-597: The discipline. Marc Girardelli of Luxembourg , a five-time overall World Cup champion, won nine World Cup super-G events. He won season titles in every discipline except super-G, where he was a runner-up three times. Girardelli was the silver medalist in the super-G at the 1987 World Championships and the 1992 Olympics . Lindsey Vonn of the U.S. leads with 28 World Cup victories in super-G and has won five season titles ( 2009 – 2012 , 2015 ). Lara Gut-Behrami of Switzerland has won 22 World Cup races, five season titles ( 2014 , 2016 , 2021 , 2023 , 2024 ), and
1092-470: The faster of the two technical disciplines, along with attracting their fans to watch the races at the venue, on-line, and on television. Few venues offer the slope and conditions required to host an extremely short Giant slalom course that can be readily viewed in its entirety by a compact gallery of fans. Modified or not, the Federation has not suggested that they will push the format to lower-level tours like
1134-403: The fatigue of a longer event. The course was methodically set with lasers, and a GPS-equipped Snowcat , to guarantee that both courses on the hill were as identical as possible to ensure equity and a fair competition. The Race Director suggested the difference between the two lanes were within "1–to–2 centimeters" tolerance of one another. The World Cup scoring system is based on awarding
1176-540: The first three seasons, super-G results were added into the giant slalom discipline for the season standings; it gained separate status for a crystal globe for the 1986 season with five events for both men and women; the first champions were Markus Wasmeier and Marina Kiehl , both of West Germany . It was added to the World Championships in 1987 , held at Crans-Montana , Switzerland. Swiss skiers Pirmin Zurbriggen and Maria Walliser won gold medals to become
1218-523: The first world champions in the event. Super-G made its Olympic debut in 1988 in Calgary , where Franck Piccard of France and Sigrid Wolf of Austria took gold at Nakiska . Hermann Maier of Austria (nicknamed 'The Herminator') is widely regarded as the greatest male super-G racer, with 24 World Cup victories and five World Cup titles ( 1998 – 2001 , 2004 ). He won the world championship in 1999 and an Olympic gold medal in 1998 , three days after
1260-441: The line and terrain before and after allow it. Higher widths can also be required if deemed necessary. Gates must be between 6 m (20 ft) and 8 m (26 ft) in width for open gates, and between 8 m (26 ft) and 12 m (39 ft) in width for vertical gates. The distance between turning poles of successive gates must be at least 25 m (82 ft). The number of direction changes must be at least 7% of
1302-436: The men's Super-G (from 2007 Super combined) World Cup podiums since the first edition in 1986. Women Men Women WOG - Winter Olympic Games, WCH - FIS World Ski Championships FIS Alpine Ski World Cup The FIS Alpine Ski World Cup is the top international circuit of alpine skiing competitions, launched in 1966 by a group of ski racing friends and experts which included French journalist Serge Lang and
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1344-425: The next decade, with some seasons divided into two portions with a fixed number of results in each period counting toward the overall, while in other seasons the best three or four results in each discipline would count. Starting with the 1979–80 season (the 14th season), points were awarded to the top 15 finishers in each race. After 1980–81 , the formula for the overall title stabilized for several years, counting
1386-434: The number of athletes who could enter the competition, but each main event was limited to 32 competitors. Parallel city event is a version of parallel slalom where only Top16 ranked are allowed to compete. Length of the track and course/gates setting are also different from classic parallel slalom, and as of 2019/20 season, they are completely replaced with normal parallel races with qualification run. There were
1428-420: The overall. The formula for the overall was changed yet again the following season , with the top four results in each discipline counting, along with all combined results (although the combined was nearly eliminated from the schedule, reduced to one or two events per season). Kjetil Andr%C3%A9 Aamodt Kjetil André Aamodt (born 2 September 1971) is a former World Cup alpine ski racer from Norway,
1470-416: The same distances as GS and on a slope of about the same pitch. The field of thirty-two were drawn following an invitational format. The top four men in the overall World Cup rankings were automatic invitees, if they chose to compete. Another 16 racers were selected from the top of the current GS start list rankings, and the final twelve competitors were selected from the 1st run efforts at the standard GS event
1512-480: The table below. As of 2 March 2024 A common measurement of how good individual skiers are is the total number of World Cup races won during their skiing career. The following skiers have won at least 20 World Cup races: update: 17 March 2024 As of 2 March 2024 As of 10 March 2024 Only a few racers have ever managed to win races in all five classic World Cup alpine skiing disciplines during their career, as listed in
1554-406: The table below. Marc Girardelli ( 1988–89 ), Petra Kronberger ( 1990–91 ), Janica Kostelić ( 2005–06 ) and Tina Maze ( 2012–13 ) are the only skiers to have won all five events in a single season. Bode Miller is the only skier with at least five World Cup victories in all five disciplines. The following skiers have won at least ten World Cup races in a single season (events not available in
1596-458: The winner for each discipline World Cup, only a racer's best three results counted, from a typical six to eight races in each discipline (consistent with the then-current classification of skiers as amateurs, who couldn't be expected compete all the time). For the overall Cup, only these best three results in each discipline were included. Until 1970, the results of Winter Olympic Games races and Alpine World Ski Championship races were also included in
1638-562: The world championships. The vertical drop for a Super-G course must be between 350–650 m (1,150–2,130 ft) for men, 350–600 m (1,150–1,970 ft) for women, and 250–450 m (820–1,480 ft) for children. In the Olympic Winter Games, FIS World Ski Championships, and FIS World Cups, minimums are raised to 400 m (1,300 ft) for both men and women. Courses are normally at least 30 m (98 ft) in width, but sections with lower widths are permissible if
1680-1208: The world: Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Italy , Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States. Lower competitive circuits include the NorAm Cup in North America and the Europa Cup in Europe. Multiple individual overall World Cup winners are marked with (#). The following skiers have at least three overall alpine World Cup titles. The following skiers have at least three overall alpine World Cup titles. Combined crystal globes were officially awarded from 2007 to 2012. Here are counted all season titles, official and unofficial. The records for most World Cup titles in each discipline are as follows: Only four men's racers have ever managed to win small crystal globe in four or more different alpine skiing disciplines during their career, as listed in
1722-453: Was also the oldest alpine skier to win an Olympic gold medal. For almost six years, Aamodt led the all-time Marathon World Cup ranking, with a total of 13,252 points earned from 1989 to 2006 – until 14 March 2012, when Austrian Benjamin Raich overtook him with a fifth place in the downhill at the 2012 World Cup final in Schladming to total 13,281 points, earned from 1998. Another all-time best
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1764-471: Was run as a World Cup test event during the 1982 season, with two men's races and a women's race that did not count in the season standings. Approved by the International Ski Federation (FIS) that summer, it was first officially run at the World Cup level in December 1982 at Val-d'Isère , France ; the winner was Peter Müller of Switzerland. The first official women's super-G was run
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