Para-alpine skiing classification and Para-Nordic skiing classification use a common classification system for disability skiing sports. The classification system is designed to ensure fair competition between skiers with different types of disabilities. They are grouped into three general types: standing, blind and sitting. The first classification systems for skiing were developed in Scandinavia in the 1960s, with early systems designed for skiers with amputations. As special equipment was developed, it was extended to allow participation by skiers with spinal cord injuries. The goal of the early classification systems was functional but ended up being medical classification systems. In more recent times the classification system has evolved to become an evidence-based system as opposed to a performance-based system so as not to punish elite athletes whose performance makes them appear in a higher class alongside competitors who train less. The classifications for skiing are LW1, LW2, LW3, LW4, LW5/7, LW6/8, and LW9, where LW stands for Locomotor Winter. There are also three sit-ski classifications: LW10, LW11 and LW12, and three classifications for blind athletes: B1, B2 and B3. The International Paralympic Committee placed snowboarding under Alpine Skiing; the two share a common set of regulations, but for its debut at the 2014 Winter Paralympics, snowboarding used a different classification system.
