‘Big Air’ – Courtesy Of The Structural Engineer

If, like me, you have been watching the Freestyle Skiing at the Winter Olympics, you will have been in awe of the competitors and asking yourself, just how do they propel themselves so high, flip, twist and turn in mid-air and still manage to land feet first at high speed without serious injury? Well, years of dedicated training and practice of course, plus nerves of steel, not to mention specialised equipment and up to the minute protective clothing…but there is another key component to the success of Freestyle Skiing – those talented engineers who design the structures needed for the skier to launch themselves off.
Half-Pipe, Slopestyle, Cross and Big Air – these are all terms we have become more familiar with since the late eighties when Freestyle Skiing was introduced to the Winter Olympics, firstly as a demonstration event and then into regular competition in 1992. I’m sure we have all been struck by the sight of the Big Air Shougang Venue in Beijing which was built on the site of a former steelworks. In contrast to previous Games, the ski jump isn’t in the mountains but has been constructed within the industrial cityscape against a backdrop of four huge cooling towers. The ski jump is 60 metres high and is constructed largely from steel. The design differs from a traditional ski jump and consists of three sections. Firstly, there is a long slope followed by a flatter area, at the end of which is the take off ramp (or Kicker) from which the skier propels themselves up to 20 metres into the air before landing on a shorter, sloped section with a gradient of between 34-39 degrees. There are concrete stands at the base with 2500 permanent seats for spectators. While we ‘ooh’ and ‘aah’ at the athleticism and daredevil of the competitors, we should also admire the architectural design of the jump itself, and the skill and knowledge of the Structural Engineer who has made it stand up safely and perform for our entertainment. Our photo shows the incredible view from the top of a ski jump in Oslo, Norway.