Chamrousse is a commune

Communes of France

The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...

 in the Isère

Isère

Isère is a department in the Rhône-Alpes region in the east of France named after the river Isère.- History :Isère is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Dauphiné...

 department in south-eastern France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

.

The majestic mountain scenery towering above Grenoble

Grenoble

Grenoble is a city in southeastern France, at the foot of the French Alps where the river Drac joins the Isère. Located in the Rhône-Alpes region, Grenoble is the capital of the department of Isère...

 is, for the most part, formed by the Belledonne range. At 30 km (19 mi.) from the Olympic Town, in the southern part of this mountain group, lies Chamrousse (a famous ski resort

Ski resort

A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing and other winter sports. In Europe a ski resort is a town or village in a ski area - a mountainous area, where there are ski trails and supporting services such as hotels and other accommodation, restaurants, equipment rental and a ski lift system...

), formed by the Recoin at 1650 m (5413') and the Roche Béranger at 1750 m (5741'). Two excellent roads lead up to the resort, where an immense and sunny domain can be used for skiing

Alpine skiing

Alpine skiing is the sport of sliding down snow-covered hills on skis with fixed-heel bindings. Alpine skiing can be contrasted with skiing using free-heel bindings: Ski mountaineering and nordic skiing – such as cross-country; ski jumping; and Telemark. In competitive alpine skiing races four...

, satisfactory both to beginners and experts. The ski-lifts reach the Cross of Chamrousse (2253 m, 7392'), where a grand panorama englobes the mountain groups of Oisans, Grandes Rousses and Taillefer.

Chamrousse hosted the six alpine skiing

Alpine skiing at the 1968 Winter Olympics

Alpine skiing at the 1968 Winter Olympics consisted of six events, held near Grenoble, France. The six events were held at Chamrousse from February 9–17, 1968.Jean-Claude Killy won all three men's events, repeating Toni Sailer's triple-gold of 1956...

 events at the 1968 Winter Olympics

1968 Winter Olympics

The 1968 Winter Olympics, officially known as the X Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1968 in Grenoble, France and opened on 6 February. Thirty-seven countries participated...

, where Jean-Claude Killy

Jean-Claude Killy

Jean-Claude Killy was an alpine ski racer, who dominated the sport in the late 1960s. He was a triple Olympic champion, winning the three alpine events at the 1968 Winter Olympics, becoming the most successful athlete there...

 of France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 swept all three gold medals in the men's events. All women's events took place at Recoin de Chamrousse, located 2 km away.

Skiing at Chamrousse

Downhill

Downhill

Downhill is an alpine skiing discipline. The rules for the Downhill were originally developed by Sir Arnold Lunn for the 1921 British National Ski Championships....

: more than 90 km (56 mi.) of runs, 24 ski lifts. And 3 espaces Free Style (Boarder cross, Snowpark, Big Air). Expert skiers will prefer the Recoin while new ones go to the Roche Béranger.

Cross-country skiing

With 37 km (23 mi.) of trails tracked, the plateau of l'Arselle is a real paradise for cross-country skiing lovers. It provides varied skiing : skating and diagonal stride styles.
Considering the depth and condition of the snow on the plateau, cross-country skiing can be practiced from the opening of the resort to early or mid April.

Tour de France

The climb of Chamrousse was used in the mountain time-trial in the 2001 Tour de France

Tour de France

The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The...

. Lance Armstrong

Lance Armstrong

Lance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...

 won the stage on 18 July 2001, when he took just over an hour to complete the hors categorie

Hors Categorie

Hors catégorie is a French term used in cycle races to designate a climb that is "beyond categorization", an incredibly tough climb. Most climbs in cycling are designated from Category 1 to Category 4 , based on both steepness and length...

 climb from Grenoble to the ski resort.

See also

• List of highest paved roads in Europe
• List of mountain passes
• Communes of the Isère department

External links

• Chamrousse.com - ski resort site (in French)
• Chamrousse web.info - la station nature (in French)]