Talk:Nordic skiing

Biathlon

I've asked a question on the Biathlon Talk Page (here) regarding our inconsistent treatment of whether biathlon is a form of Nordic Skiing. It has to be mentioned here, but to keep discussion in one place, it should only be discussed on the Biathlon Talk page. Tlhslobus (talk) 08:03, 22 February 2014 (UTC)

The discussion on the biathlon talk page was short, and I have now updated the lead part of this article. Biathlon is mentioned, but its relation to Nordic skiing without being a Nordic sport, is also mentioned. Fomalhaut76 (talk) 13:37, 20 February 2022 (UTC)

Competition versus recreation

Here, too, the issue of recreational versus competition Nordic skiing pertains. The term is a discriminator between Alpine skiing—with fixed-heal bindings and primarily reliant on ski lifts or removing one's skis to ascend—and sports where the heel comes off the ski and (except for ski jumping) locomotion is usually with the ski on, uphill and down. I propose that the tent be enlarged to encompass recreational and competitive pursuits. This also resolves the "Nordic" label on the skiing template. User:HopsonRoad 14:17, 19 November 2014 (UTC)

Se also discussion on the navbar page. If we want to distinguish Nordic and Alpine in the recreational context (which I think is not easy), we need some criteria independent of international rules and governing bodies. The fixed heal is perhaps the best candidate, and historically Alpine skiing branched off from other skiing when the Lilienfeld binding was introduced by Zdarsky. The use of ski lifts can perhaps be an additional criteria. In Norway, Telemark and Alpine are related in the recreational context and often regarded as more or less the same because these activities are typically done on the same or nearby slopes using the same lifts. In the recreational context, XC skiing in groomed tracks stands out as something else. While all kinds of backcountry skiing (ski hiking, summit skiing, ski tour) blurres these categories completely. Summit skiing for instance of involves both XC style (including steep hill climbing) and downhill (Telemark or Alpin turn depending on snow and equipment). --Erik den yngre (talk) 16:08, 19 November 2014 (UTC)

Image gallery

I have removed the image gallery. To be valid encyclopaedic content, image galleries should consist of images which collectively add to the reader's understanding of the topic. This one was simply an indiscriminate collection of images. Such collections are exactly what Wikimedia Commons is for, and they should not appear in Wikipedia articles. See the image use guidelines. Rbka (talk) 15:51, 22 October 2017 (UTC)

I dont fully agree. The images are typical examples of branches of Nordic skiing, but I agree that the captions could be more informative. I have now removed Telemark in the infobox as it is not representative for Nordic. XC and jumping are the basic discplines. --— Erik Jr. 16:13, 22 October 2017 (UTC)

Unfortunately, Rbka's first edit to address "vague" language did not properly reflect that Nordic skiing encompasses a variety of techniques, which are properly illustrated in the images that were incorporated. I have restored the images and clarified the text in the lead sentence. User:HopsonRoad 01:19, 23 October 2017 (UTC)

As to which image should be in the infobox, it's really a question of the comparative importance of recreational Nordic skiing versus Nordic competition. Many more people do recreational Nordic pursuits than competitive, so it's fitting to depict a recreational discipline in the infobox. Telemark competition is a reasonable compromise between the two arenas, in my opinion. User:HopsonRoad 01:23, 23 October 2017 (UTC)

When the gallery disappeared, it was strange to keep Telemark as the only photo and none of the basic disciplines. "Nordic" is primarily defined in the competitive field, and Telemark is really a minor discipline compared to XC and jumping. Telemark is not very representative for the Nordic disciplines. If we keep the gallery it is not a big deal. --— Erik Jr. 07:54, 23 October 2017 (UTC)

In North America, "Nordic skiing" refers primarily to cross-country and telemark on the recreational side, since ski jumping has virtually disappeared, even as a competitive discipline. User:HopsonRoad 22:40, 23 October 2017 (UTC)

Perhaps North-A is not representative? WP should keep a global perspective. My hunch is that XC incl "backcountry" is the most widespread recreational nordic. On other hand: Jumping is a still a big sport in Europe and Japan. I would vote for XC as most representative for nordic. --— Erik Jr. 22:49, 23 October 2017 (UTC)

I would support that idea. And, yes, English-speakers regard backcountry telemark skiing to be a Nordic discipline. (We also do back-country recreation on snow shoes, snow boards and alpine skis.) We need to keep in mind that this is an article about the English-speaker's sense of the term, which is different than the equivalent terms in other languages, many of which appear to focus primarily on competition, as illustrated in the Norwegian and German articles. User:HopsonRoad 01:45, 24 October 2017 (UTC)

We should keep a globale perspective about the topic, but as understood in the English language. That is true, but is not easy to keep apart in practice: English language understanding often means a US/UK perspective. In Norway we actually use the notion "Nordic skiing" only in relation to competition (to keep it apart from Alpine and Biathlon) as it is not informative to talk about XC skiing as "Nordic". --— Erik Jr. 23:17, 24 October 2017 (UTC)

Definition of Nordic skiing

I'd like to suggest a different definition of Nordic skiing for the lead: arguably, the most distinctive thing about Nordic/cross-country skiing is the fact that it involves skiing both up and down hills (ie does not use ski lifts). The particular style of boot seems a bit technical. But is there an even better definition I'm missing? An.as8594 (talk) 23:31, 3 August 2020 (UTC)

Actually, on reflection, is it worth having a separate page for Nordic skiing and cross-country skiing, seeing as they're virtual synonyms in colloquial usage? If so, perhaps we should place more emphasis on the Alpine touring and Telemark aspects included under the technical definition of Nordic skiing (and in doing so, move away from the free-heel definition on this page, as Alpine touring apparently doesn't require it). An.as8594 (talk) 00:58, 4 August 2020 (UTC)

Thank you for your thoughts, An.as8594. The reason that this page exists is that biathlon, cross country, ski jumping, and Nordic combined are all considered separate disciplines of Nordic skiing, having a free heel in common and having common origins. The analogy is Alpine skiing, which itself has a variety of disciplines. I agree that the page is not well define. Cheers, HopsonRoad (talk) 02:11, 4 August 2020 (UTC)

Very fair. Hmm... maybe then a minimal rewrite could highlight those two points (the free heel and the common origin), as well as directing readers to more well-developed pages. 'Nordic skiing refers to a number of European skiing styles, including cross country, ski jumping, and Nordic combined, in which the heel of the ski boot is not fixed to the ski', or something along those lines? An.as8594 (talk) 17:42, 4 August 2020 (UTC)

I would drop the "European"—the disciplines are found in the Americas, Asia, Antarctica, and Oceana, as well. Remember that in Wikipedia, we largely paraphrase what we find in reliable sources. this item is aimed towards kids, but has legitimate material to use. This source is at an adult level that covers the skiing sport spectrum. I'd find something to quote from sources, such as these. In searching for definitions, you'll find that Nordic skiing has both meanings—the disciplines above—or, simply, just cross-country skiing. Good luck! I'll try to help you along, if I see an issue. Cheers, HopsonRoad (talk) 18:35, 4 August 2020 (UTC)

A Commons file used on this page or its Wikidata item has been nominated for deletion

The following Wikimedia Commons file used on this page or its Wikidata item has been nominated for deletion:

• Télémark 2.jpg

Participate in the deletion discussion at the nomination page. —Community Tech bot (talk) 17:51, 19 June 2022 (UTC)