Olympic debut: 1998 Nagano

First snowboarders: A handful of surfers in the 1950s developed snowboarding as a way to ride the waves during the off-season

Canadian Snowboarder who won, lost and re-won gold medal: Ross Rebagliati won gold at the 1998 Nagano Olympics, the first year snowboarding was an Olympic sport. The IOC stripped him of his medal when traces of THC, were detected in a drug test. A board reversed the decision and Ross got his gold back.

First snowboard on the market: Sherman Poppen's Snurfer (snow surfer), a narrow wooden sled with a rope handle

Beginner slopes: After being banned from groomed skiing slopes, the first snowboarders took to the backcountry

Alternatives to snowboarding: Tierney rides (boarding on pavement), mountain boarding, sand boarding, kite snowboarding, heli (copter) boarding

Different boards for different styles: Freestyle snowboards are light, short and easily maneuverable, while Alpine snowboards are long and rigid to cut sharp edges

Skateboarding comparison: Snowboarders shift their weight from heels to toes as well as from one end of the board to the other

Record air: At the 2001 Arctic Challenge in Holmenkollen, Norway Heikki Sorsa soared an extraordinary 9.3 metres above the quarter pipe

First world snowboarding championship: Lake Tahoe, Calif., 1983 (halfpipe competition)

Designer of one of the first modern snowboards: American Jake Burton Carpenter

First World Cup tour to include venues in North America and Europe: 1987

Year the International Snowboarding Federation (ISF) was developed: 1990

Approximate number of snowboarders worldwide: 15 million

Snowboarder explosion: From 1988 to 1995, the number of American snowboarders almost doubled

The first snowboarding event in the Olympics: Men’s giant slalom, with Canadian Jasey-Jay Anderson recording the fastest time

Snowboarder boycotts Winter Games: Norwegian Terje Haakonsen chose opted out of the 1998 Olympics because of the governing body’s regulations and judging.