giant slalom
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giant slalom
A discipline in alpine skiing in which the gates are farther apart than in slalom, requiring higher speeds and wider turns.
Er gewann die Goldmedaille im Riesenslalom bei den Olympischen Spielen.
He won the gold medal in giant slalom at the Olympic Games.
The word is made up of 'Riesen' and 'Slalom'. 'Riese' means 'giant', so a 'Riesenslalom' is literally a 'giant slalom' — which points to the larger distances and wider turns.
Der Riesenslalom ist technisch anspruchsvoller als eine normale Abfahrt.
Giant slalom is more technically demanding than a normal downhill race.
The component 'Riesen-' is often used as a prefix to express that something is very big. You find it in words like 'Riesenproblem' (huge problem) or 'Riesenfreude' (great joy).
Der Sieg war für sie eine Riesenüberraschung.
The victory was a huge surprise for her.
When talking about participating in this discipline, you use the preposition 'in' with the dative: 'im Riesenslalom' (in giant slalom).
Die Athletin startet morgen im Riesenslalom.
The athlete is competing in giant slalom tomorrow.
In a sports context, 'Riesenslalom' (giant slalom) is often combined with verbs such as 'fahren' (to ski/race), 'gewinnen' (to win), 'trainieren' (to train), or 'starten' (to compete/start).
Er hat den ganzen Sommer für den Riesenslalom trainiert.
He trained all summer for the giant slalom.
slalom
Slalom and Riesenslalom are both alpine skiing disciplines with gates, but their courses differ. In Riesenslalom, the gates are farther apart, so skiers make wider turns and usually go faster. Use “Slalom” as a general term or for the tighter discipline, and “Riesenslalom” for the version with greater distances between the gates.
Beim Riesenslalom fährt der Skifahrer wegen der weiter auseinanderstehenden Tore größere Kurven.
In giant slalom, the skier makes wider turns because the gates are farther apart.
Beim Slalom muss die Skifahrerin viele eng stehende Tore in kurzer Zeit durchfahren.
In slalom, the skier has to pass through many closely spaced gates in a short time.
