Over time, forms of transportation and ways to exercise and compete have come together. Skiing, in general, began as far back as eight thousand years ago as a way to travel and hunt, but ambition and rivalry morphed the sport into a downhill competition. Although the place of origin for skiing is unknown, alpine ski racing was started in the Alps of Austria. People and trends throughout history have influenced the way skiing for entertainment has changed and also created the Olympic event of alpine ski racing in 1936. The year of 1936 was a time where many parts of the world were recovering from the Depression, but for others it was a year of conflict. Safety and rules have become stricter and equipment, styles, and trends have changed. Alpine skiing has been a major part of Olympic history and influence on winter athletes' lives. Although skiing has its roots in prehistoric times, alpine skiing would not have come to fruition until Sondre Norheim developed the first toe and heel binding in Telemark, Norway in 1850. Since the boots were more secured onto the ski, bored Nordic skiers were now able to ski faster and down steeper, more intense mountains. The word "Nordic  comes from Scandinavia, where there was mostly flat land for cross-country skiing. Mathias Zdarksy was very critical of the Nordic method, extremely common among Russian and Scandinavian skiers, and believed that it was completely useless for skiing in the Alps. Zdarsky, already a teacher and philosopher, is also credited for being the inventor of the downhill way of skiing, where he founded the first downhill-only skiing academy. Mathias Zdarsky, with the invention of this winter sport, which continues to be popular today, has always been remembered as the "Father of Alpine Skiing  for using the Lillienfield method to instruct developing skiers. According to the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee, hillmen who captivated Russian skiers' attention caused the sport to grow: In the early 1900s, so-called "hillmen" who preferred racing downhill, began to stand out among Russian skiers, although they soon got carried away by  downhill skiing involving turns, which would later be  known as  slalom racing. Alpine skiing's popularity grew rapidly in  the ensuing years. By  the 1970s, about 28,000 athletes were being trained in  sports centers for adults and children. Zdarsky's new form of skiing was an exhilarating change from Nordic skiing, and the sport has continued to grow and develop today. Skiing in general is older than the invention of the wheel and has more history than any other winter sport. The discovery of ski fragments and rock carvings in Russia, Finland, Sweden and Norway have been able to date back to 6000 B.C. However, the skiing as far as 8000 years ago was not used for competition but rather for transportation, war, and hunting. Nordic skiing was developed in the flat land of Scandinavia, which is the basis of all skiing in the modern world. Scandinavia has been known for the lack of hills and mountains and Nordic skiing was ideal for this terrain; but in the Alps, an extremely precipitous mountain range, this method was useless. Although alpine ski racing has remained one of the United States' strongest Olympic events, alpine skiing originated in European countries. Even though skiing is believed to have begun in 6000 B.C., a significant date in the sport's history is when this event was added to the winter Olympic games in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany in 1936. 1936 was not only a crucial year for alpine skiing but also for countries that were recovering from the Depression. The United States' unemployment rate in 1936 was half of what it was in 1932, at a stable fifteen percent, and Britain was at about fourteen percent. Meanwhile in Britain, the increase in Jewish immigration through April of 1936 led to gruesome riots between Palestine and Britain. Nine Jews in Jaffa, Palestine were killed after British soldiers burnt down Jewish homes and destroyed orchards and shops. British soldiers killed one hundred forty Muslims over eight months and the British soon altered the rules in respect to Jewish immigration to Palestine. Although the addition of alpine skiing to the Olympics was a compelling part of 1936, many parts of the world were in chaos. Alpine skiing h