SALT LAKE 2002 Alpine Skiing Biathlon Bobsleigh Cross-Country Skiing Curling Figure Skating Freestyle Skiing Ice Hockey Luge Nordic Combined

Alpine Skiing With five disciplines for men and women and multiple runs in some events, the skiing never stops at the Olympic Games. The Olympic alpine events will be held at three glorious venues that are more than 70 miles apart. The downhill is the only alpine discipline in which training runs are allowed on the Olympic course.

Biathlon Eight biathlon events in the Olympic program combine skiing and marksmanship. Soldier Hollow will host the biathlon events, with a maximum of 220 athletes competing in the Salt Lake Games. Combine four different races, two distinct ways of starting the competitions, and rifle shooting, and biathlon can get confusing. Get the explanation here.

Bobsleigh For the first time in Olympic history, women will compete in the bobsleigh event at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City. Park City will host the competition, where a maximum of 125 athletes will participate. Getting there is based on how many points an athlete accumulates in the World Cup. Once they make it, it's all about the medals. After years of preparation and training and two runs down the Olympic course, determining the bobsleigh winners at the Salt Lake Games could come down to.001 seconds.

Cross-Country Skiing From 1.5-kilometer sprints to 30- and 50-kilometer marathons, cross-country races cover a wide range of distances and two different disciplines. For cross-country, a country may enter a maximum of four athletes in each individual event and one team of four in each of the relays. An athlete must have at least 100 points on the FIS points list to be eligible to compete in the Olympic Winter Games. With two styles of skiing, six different distances and relays, the cross-country competition can get confusing. The details are spelled out here.

Curling Curling has been referred to as chess on ice. The right strategy and pinpoint shotmaking are what each skip will hope to deliver. Ten men's and women's teams will take part in the curling competitions hosted in Ogden, Utah, 35 miles north of Salt Lake City. One game consists of 10 ends. An end is similar to a baseball inning. During each end, each team delivers eight stones -- two stones per person.

Figure Skating Olympic figure skating consists of four medal events or disciplines: ladies' singles, men's singles, pairs and ice dancing. Venue information, participant info, and how they qualified to get there. The Olympic field of play and rules relating to start order, music and each event in more detail.

Freestyle Skiing Moguls combines speed with jumping and skiing technique. Aerialists turn amazing tricks in the air, getting as high as a three- or four-story building. Deer Valley will host the competition, where a maximum of 135 athletes will participate. Getting there is based on how many points an athlete accumulates in the World Cup. Moguls scoring is a combination of judging jumps and bumps -- and speed. Aerials are scored on air, form, and the all-important landing.

Ice Hockey The men's tournament consists of 14 teams -- six of which automatically qualify for the final round. The women's tournament will field eight teams. The 55 Olympic matches will be played at two venues -- the E Center in West Valley City and The Peaks Ice Arena in Provo. From offsides to icing to playing the puck?/span>

Luge Luge and short track speed skating are the most precisely timed events of the Olympic Winter Games. Utah Olympic Park is one of the fastest luge tracks in the world. Find out why someone checks a sled's temperature before a race.

Nordic Combined No winter sport tests an athlete's overall abilities like nordic combined. A nordic combined athlete must have the explosive power of a ski jumper and the endurance of a cross-country racer. The event will be held amid the grandeur of the Utah Olympic Park and the plains of Soldier Hollow. Altitude will definitely play a role in Salt Lake City. The thin air challenges the athletes' conditioning and tests their ability in the ski jump.