Skeleton, invented in Switzerland in the late 1800s, was first adopted as a sport for the 1928 Winter Olympics in St. Moritz, Switzerland, where it was invented. Skeleton would only make one more appearance in the Winter Games in the twentieth century, in 1948, when the Olympics again returned to St. Moritz. The sport reappeared at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City, with both men's and women's events.
Basics
Like the luge, the object of skeleton is to race down the track as fast as possible, timed to the nearest hundreth of a second..Unlike the luge however, skeleton racers begin with a thrust stage, where they run and then dive onto their sleds head first. Competitors lay flat on their stomach with their arms at their sides on skeleton sleds, maneuvering down an ice covered track.
Competition
A skeleton race consists of four runs by each competitor, with two runs per day for two days. The second day is reserved for the fastest competitors, usually 12, depending on the size of the field. The total time of the four runs is added up, with the fasted aggregate time declared the winner. The order of the first run is determined by a random draw, with the order of the following rounds determined by the order of finish in the previous run. There is an advantage to going first, as the ice is freshest and does not have the irregularities that come with riders sliding down the track.
Weight
As there is an advantage in being heavier when sliding down a track, there are weight maximums that regulate how much the rider and sled may weigh. For men's competition, the combined weight of the rider and sled may not exceed 115 kg, or 253.5 pounds, according to the FIBT, which is a French acronym for the International Federation of Toboggan Bobsleds, the governing body of the sport. The sled alone may not weigh more than 43 kg, or 94.8 pounds. For women, those totals are 92 kg, or 202.8 pounds for rider and sled, and 35 kg, or 77.2 pounds for the sled alone.
Equipment
The official FIBT rules state that a helmet that covers the head and ear region is mandatory for all training sessions and competition. Chin guards and visors are often used, and spoilers are not allowed on the helmet. Competitors also often wear spiked shoes to grip the ice better at the start of the run, but the spikes must not be longer than 4 mm and must be at least 3 mm apart from each other. Long sleeves and pants must also be worn, often in a skin-tight elastic suit.
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