Winter Olympics Glossary
Each sports discipline has its own terminology, important both for communication and competition. Considered a precise language for each sport’s category or a working tool for experts and journalists, but also a sign of belonging to a specific tribe of sports fans.
Curling
Back line: The line at the rear edge of the house. The back line is located 6 feet from the tee line. Stones that completely cross the back line are removed.
Bonspiel: A curling tourney.
Button: The innermost circle of the house. It is just slightly larger than a stone (12 inches in diameter).
End: An end is complete when all 16 rocks have been thrown. Matches consist of 10 ends, but can go longer in case of ties.
Hammer: The team throwing the final stone in an end is said to have the hammer.
Hard: A shouted command that tells players to sweep.
House: Four concentric circles that make up the scoring zone. The white center circle (the button) is 12 inches in diameter. The next circle (red) is 4 feet, the next (white) is 8 feet and the outer (blue) is 12 feet. Only stones touching or hanging over the outside circle can count for points.
Hurry: A shouted command that tells players to sweep.
Pebbles: Drops of water applied to the ice which freezes to form small bumps. These bumps reduce resistance between the ice and stone.
Rink: A curling team.
Sheet: The 146-foot long playing area.
Skip: The leader of a curling team.
Tee: The center of the house, where the tee line and center line intersect.
Figure skating
Axel: The only jump that involves taking off from a forward position. The skater takes off with his forward outside skate and lands on the back outside edge of the opposite skate.
Biellmann spin: Skater stands straight, reaches behind his or her shoulders and clutches the skate blade of the free leg. The skater pulls his or her free leg up toward the roof and rotates in a reverse position.
Code of Points: Set of technical regulations for skaters that detail point values of elements
Combination: When two skills are performed in immediate sequence.
Flip: A jump in which a skater thrusts the toe pick of his her free leg into the ice to propel upward, completing the rotation by landing on the back outside edge of the foot that he or she jumped off of.
Loop: A jump in which the skater jumps from the back outside edge of one foot, landing on the back outside edge of the same foot.
Lutz: Gliding backward on a wide curve, the skater taps the toe pick of his or her other foot, rotating in the opposite direction of the curve.
Salchow: Jump that involves taking off from the back inside edge of one foot, landing on the back outside edge of the opposite. When taking off, the skater swings his or her free leg in the same direction he is turning in order to complete a rotation.
Toe loop: The skater uses the toe pick of his or her free leg (the non-landing leg to propel off the ice.
Freestyle skiing
A-frame: When a mogul skier's thighs are together but legs are split from below the knee.
Air: In moguls and aerials, a jump from a ramp with acrobatic movements.
Backside: The side of the mogul that faces downhill.
Balk: A aerial skier's decision to abort take-off.
Carving: The moguls technique of edging the skis through turns to control speed.
Catching an edge: When a ski digs too deeply into the mogul, causing the skier to lose control
Front side: The side of a mogul that faces uphill.
Four-point landing: When both poles and skis are planted as the skier lands a jump in moguls competition.
Knoll: The top, flat portion of a landing hill in aerial competition.
Pop: The extension of a mogul skier's body at the start of the jump that helps set a flip in motion.
Pull: A shouted command by aerial coaches to make skiers tighten their tuck and speed up their rotation.
Ruts: The area between moguls.
Slapback: An over-rotation of a somersault, which causes a skier to slap their back (and sometimes head) onto the landing hill.
Speed check: When an aerial athlete skis down the in-run to test their speed.
Stretch: A shouted command by aerial coaches to make skiers stretch their layout and slow down rotation.
Trough :A path between the moguls.