As in Olympic alpine skiing, the goal is to navigate a course by skiing within gates and crossing the finish line in the fastest time. Over the years, events were added for sit skiers and visually impaired skiers, and the program was expanded to include the five races familiar to fans of alpine skiing at the Olympic level. 

Para alpine skiing includes: Alpine Combined, Downhill, Giant Slalom, Slalom and Super G. 

Alpine skiers are seperated into three groups: sitting, standing and visually impaired. There are additional classifications within each group that skiers compete under.