From 1885, hotel owners wanted to open in winter to enjoy the snow season  especially in Davos, St. Moritz and Zermatt. They offered skating lessons, excursions by sledge and bob, toboggan rides and finally, a chance to try out those strange wooden planks called ‘skis’. Audacious tourists slid a few meters before falling, to the great amusement of onlookers. This was the beginning of wintersport.

In 1890, with the translation of ‘Skiing across Greenland’ by the Norwegian Fridtjof Nansen, a keen interest for skiing became widespread throughout Europe. From then on, skis became THE means of transport to set across snow and courageous mountaineers began to crisscross the Alps.

The two Davos posters from 1901 and the magnificent poster ‘Sports d’Hiver en Suisse’ designed in 1904 by Colombi for Swiss Railways CFF-SBB, were the first posters to highlight skiing. In France it was Abel Faivre’s poster for Chamonix in 1905. They began the great tradition of ‘L’affiche de sports d’Hiver’, winter sports posters. The rare examples of these still in existence, are avidly searched for by amateurs and collectors alike.

Rapidly, these new past-time leisures became very popular throughout the Alps. Ski Clubs were founded right across the Alpine region and from the beginning of the 20th century, the first downhill skiing and ski jumps were organized. ‘Skijöring’ was presented in St Moritz (a skier pulled by a horse). The first slalom took place in Mürren, Switzerland in 1922.

The first Winter Olympics of 1924 and especially those held in St Moritz in 1928, marked the consecration of Wintersport.

Techniques and styles quickly evolved. From simple planks of wood, skis were immediately improved. The front was raised and pointed – the skis were thinned – the leather straps were retained by a metal fastening, while the heel moved freely. The then style, invented in Norway in 1860 was called ‘Telemark’.

The first ski-lift was opened in1934 in Davos. Since then ski-lifts and cable-cars have invaded the Alps.

While, from 1890, Ski-touring was practiced using 2 wooden poles, downhill skiers did not use 2 poles until 1915. By the end of the thirties they were made of metal.

The Flex attachment with the handle at the front and the spring at the back appeared in the 1920’s, then along came metallic skis and metallic ski poles in the fifties. Security features appeared in the sixties.

Double or triple shoe lacing was used towards 1955. Buckled shoes and the first hard ski boots in plastic were produced in the 1960’s.

After the ‘Telemark’, styles prospered in relation to the evolution of techniques: the Christianer in the 1950, the ‘Wedeln’, (with a body positioned well back) and the ‘Obstraken’ in the 1960’s, right up to the ‘Carving, snowboard and freeride' styles of today.

Happy skiing.