Alpine skiing was first contested at the 1936 Winter Olympics. Men’s and women’s alpine skiing events include combined, downhill, slalom, giant slalom and super-G. Mikaela Shiffrin set the record as the youngest gold medalist in slalom in Olympic alpine skiing history in 2014. In 2018, her second Olympic gold medal in the giant slalom tied her with Ted Ligety and Andrea Mead Lawrence for the most Olympic gold medals won by an American Olympian in alpine skiing.
Alpine skiing debuted as a Paralympic sport at the first Winter Paralympic Games in 1976. Para alpine skiing events include men’s and women’s downhill, super combined, super-G, slalom and giant slalom. Sarah Will, Chris Waddell and Nancy Gustafson are famous names in para alpine skiing.
Candace Cable participated in nine different Paralympic Games in three sports and was the first U.S. woman to win medals in both the Paralympic Games and Paralympic Winter Games. She won eight gold medals and had 84 career first-place marathon finishes.
Paralyzed from the waist down after a skiing accident, Chris Waddell went on to compete in seven Paralympic Games, winning 13 medals and becoming the most decorated male monoskier in U.S. history.
David Kiley competed at five Paralympic Games in wheelchair basketball, track and field, and alpine skiing. He won a total of 13 Paralympic medals.
Losing a leg to cancer at age 12 did not stop Diana Golden winning the gold medal in a demonstration event at the Calgary 1988 Olympic Winter Games and two more at the Innsbruck 1988 Paralympic Winter Games.
After her Olympic dream was postponed, Gretchen Fraser became the first American to win an alpine skiing medal.
Lindsey Vonn is considered one of the greatest Olympic ski racers. She is the only American woman to win an Olympic downhill gold and grab four world cup overall titles.
Muffy Davis competed in Paralympic alpine skiing and para cycling, winning a total of seven Paralympic medals, three of which are gold medals.
Phil Mahre navigated the slalom course at the Sarajevo 1984 Olympic Winter Games to become just the second American to ever win a gold medal in Alpine Skiing.
Picabo Street won a silver medal in the downhill at the Lillehammer 1994 Olympic Winter Games and recovered from a knee injury to win gold in the Super-G at the Nagano 1998 Olympic Winter Games.
Sarah Will was paralyzed from the waist down in a skiing accident, but she returned to the slopes to become one of the greatest Paralympic skiers, winning 12 gold medals and one silver.
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