Paying Attention: Cross Country skiing is the sport of ski touring across snow covered terrain using skis and poles. The skis are thinner than those used for downhill skiing and because participants are expected to go uphill as well as downhill, the sport can be quite demanding physically.Along with swimming, cross country skiing is considered one of the most perfect sports for fitness and endurance..if you can survive the learning curve.There will be multiple cross country events (sometimes abbreviated as XC) in the 2014 Winter Olympics. Check out this wiki for more background on the sport.
The sport is most popular in Northern Europe, Canada and Alaska. Cross country skiing grew rapidly in the seventies and eighties due to a technology disruption, when a small and innovative American company named Trak Ski Company introduced a “fish scale” bottom on their cross country skis which enabled skiers to climb hills without having to stop and wax the skis to improve the grip. A pretty terrific Official Olympic Video on Cross Country Skiing and the sports greatest athlete, Bjorn Daelie, is archived for viewing at YouTube.