Olympics - Alpine skiing - Skiers from warmer climes enjoy the racing as well as the experience

YANQING, China : In a sport dominated by Europeans and North Americans, the Olympic Alpine giant slalom has a way of attracting competitors known on the ski circuit as "the exotics", from countries with little or no winter sports tradition.

Violinist Vanessa-Mae was one well-known example, competing for Thailand at the 2014 Sochi Games where she finished 67th.

This year, skiers representing Saudi Arabia, Cyprus, Timor Leste, India, Mexico, Jamaica, Ghana, Puerto Rico, Eritrea, Madagascar and Israel all signed up for the Olympic giant slalom.

While some openly admitted their aim was to widen diversity or to simply soak up the atmosphere of the Olympics, others had come because they wanted to compete.

"It was clear that I go for gas rather than being safe. I always want to go as fast as possible. For me, just coming down, that's not an option; that's not my DNA," said Ghana's 43-year-old Carlos Maeder, one of 33 skiers who failed to finish the first leg of Sunday's men's giant slalom.

Maeder, who was adopted by a couple in Switzerland and said he could ski before he could walk, embraces the term "exotics". "Ghana doesn't stop at the borders," he added.

Scholarships and personal wealth can help with paying for the training and travel needed to qualify for the Olympics. Some racers put the cost of preparing for the Games at around $70,000.

"I'm still a one-man show. I've never had like a federation in the back or like a personal coach so it was a lot of work," Maeder said.

Fayik Abdi, Saudi Arabia's first Winter Olympian, learned to ski at the age of four on holidays in Lebanon, but started racing less than a year ago. He said he was indifferent about being labelled one of the "exotics".

"It is odd but it is also accurate to what we