Editing Slalom skiing (section)

== Equipment ==
[[File:Skis carving race cross slalom 02.jpg|240px|thumb|right|Bottom: 2013 FIS legal slalom race skis, top: giant slalom race skis from 2006]]
With the innovation of shaped skis around the turn of the 21st century, equipment used for slalom in international competition changed drastically. [[FIS Alpine Ski World Cup|World Cup]] skiers commonly skied on slalom skis at a length of {{convert|203|-|207|cm|1}} in the 1980s and 1990s but by the [[Alpine skiing at the 2002 Winter Olympics|2002 Olympic Winter Games]] in [[Salt Lake City]], the majority of competitors were using skis measuring {{convert|160|cm|1|abbr=on}} or less.

The downside of the shorter skis was that athletes found that recoveries were more difficult with a smaller platform underfoot. Out of concern for the safety of athletes, the [[International Ski Federation|FIS]] began to set minimum ski lengths for international slalom competition. The minimum was initially set at {{convert|155|cm|1|abbr=on}} for men and {{convert|150|cm|1|abbr=on}} for women, but was increased to {{convert|165|cm|1|abbr=on}} for men and {{convert|155|cm|1|abbr=on}} for women for the [[2004 Alpine Skiing World Cup|2003–2004 season]].
 
The equipment minimums and maximums imposed by the International Ski Federation (FIS) have created a backlash from skiers, suppliers, and fans. The main objection is that the federation is regressing the equipment, and hence the sport, by two decades.<ref>{{cite news|title=Giant Slalom Racers Object to a Mandate on New Equipment|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/23/sports/giant-slalom-skiers-object-to-equipment-mandate.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220101/https://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/23/sports/giant-slalom-skiers-object-to-equipment-mandate.html |archive-date=2022-01-01 |url-access=limited|access-date=15 February 2017|newspaper=The New York Times|date=22 November 2011}}{{cbignore}}</ref> 
 
American [[Bode Miller]] hastened the shift to the shorter, more radical sidecut skis when he achieved unexpected success after becoming the first [[AAU Junior Olympic Games|Junior Olympic]] athlete to adopt the equipment in giant slalom and super-G in 1996. A few years later, the technology was adapted to slalom skis as well.