Claudia Riegler

Claudia Riegler (born 7 July 1973 in Vienna) is an Austrian snowboarder. From 1994 to today, it reached a total of 22 podiums and four victories in the Snowboard World Cup.

Career

World Cup Debut and initial success

Riegler, who starts for the USC Flachau, made ​​her international debut as part of the Snowboard World Cup on 24 November 1994 in Zell am See. Here she was able to rank 14 in the parallel slalom and two days later with rank 16 in the giant slalom at once the leap into the top twenty. February 1995 and January 1996, she competed in FIS races in Austria and Italy and compelling performance with mostly good top - 10 finishes. Back in the World Cup she immediately reached also good rankings in the top ten. At the end of the 1995/96 season Riegler was on the 25th place in the overall World Cup standings.

In February and March 1996 Riegler started again at FIS races. In Bad Gastein, Schliersee and Innerkrems they stood in all competitions on the podium. At the beginning of the season 1996/97 she was again able to get a good start with a seventh place in Zell am See. Despite this good result, it changed again in the lower division FIS races where she was active until January 1997. Back in the World Cup she was able to qualify through good points standings for the Snowboard World Cup 1997 in San Candido. There, she reached for a seventh place in the slalom, which places 12 in the parallel slalom and 18 in snowboard cross. Despite fluctuating in follow-up services Riegler was at the end of the 1996/97 season in eighth place in the overall World Cup standings. In the snowboard cross - discipline rating it was even sixth. The main reason was their first World Cup podium finish in March at snowboard cross in Bern.

In the 1997/98 season Riegler was difficult. By January 1998, there remained with mediocre individual results. It was not until she reached Lienz again a rank in the top ten. Then moved even for two races in the snowboard Continental, but came back into the World Cup squad. They missed in Oberstdorf in fourth just under the podium. It was her best result of the season. At the Austrian Snowboard Championships in March 1998 in Bad Gastein Riegler won silver in the slalom, but missed in the giant slalom in fourth medal scarce.

For the 1998/99 season Riegler could improve their performance again. However, a World Cup victory, they could still not reach. Also in the Snowboard World Championship 1999 in Berchtesgaden she remained without a medal. At the end of the season it was on the 11th place in the overall World Cup standings.

First World Cup Victory

After initial difficulties at the beginning of the 1999/2000 season succeeded Riegler on 12 March 2000 in San Candido first to win a World Cup. At the Austrian Championships 2000 Radstadt, she won the bronze medal in the Giant Slalom and Snowboard Cross.

In the Snowboard World Championship 2001 in Madonna di Campiglio she retired after an 18th place out in the giant slalom in the later parallel slalom and was also in snowboard cross only Eleventh. At season's end she succeeded in Ruka for the second time in their career of victory in the snowboard cross. Riegler was able to prevail for the first time at the Austrian Championships and won the title in Radstadt in the parallel giant slalom.

After the kick-off to the World Cup in 2001/ 02 was rather unsettled for Riegler, they launched at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City in the parallel giant slalom and drove at the end on the 28th place. Shortly thereafter, she won at the Austrian Championships 2002 in Bad Kleinkirchheim the title in the parallel slalom. In the same discipline she stood again towards the end of the season in Ruka at the top of the podium.

European Cup and return to the World Cup

Once again they did not show consistently good performance in the 2002/ 03 World Cup season, they had to go to Kreischberg back without a medal after the Snowboard World Cup 2003. In the following season, she was unsuccessful. Only nationally she defended her title in the parallel slalom. In the season 2004/ 05 she moved between the World Cup, European Cup and Nor -Am Cup, but could seriously assert in any of the series. In the Snowboard World Championships 2005 in Whistler, it launched only in the parallel giant slalom and drove at the end of 15th place at the start of season 2005/ 06 she moved after weak start services firmly into the European Cup squad. Here she managed a victory in Saint Petersburg.

In October 2006, Riegler came back into the World Cup squad. In December, she went to Bad Gastein in fourth just wide of the podium over. However, they could not keep these benefits constant but convinced in March with a second place in the Canadian Stoneham. In January 2008, she was able to first place again for several competitions in the world rankings and was in La Molina twice on the podium. Also in March 2008, she succeeded in doing so in Valmalenco. In the 2008/ 09 season Riegler started with a fourth place in Landgraaf. In January, she stood in Kreischberg on the podium again. In the Snowboard World Championships 2009 in Gangwon she drove in the parallel slalom and parallel giant slalom in just short of a medal over, but celebrated good top - 10 finishes.

A year later at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver took Riegler in the parallel giant slalom seventh place. As a result, they ended up only rarely outside the top -10 rankings in the World Cup. She celebrated her biggest success in the Snowboard World Cup 2011 in La Molina, where she won silver in the parallel giant slalom and bronze in the parallel slalom. Also at the Austrian Championships 2011 Riegler won for the first time after many years and won a silver medal in the parallel giant slalom.

Also in the 2011/12 season and the 2012/13 season she could hold their services in spite of the advanced age constant. Only in the Snowboard World Cup 2013, it was beaten to the strong field and was only ninth in the parallel giant slalom and 15th in parallel slalom. At the end of the 2012/13 season Riegler finished second in the parallel and parallel giant slalom overall standings each eighth. In the parallel slalom Appreciation was twelfth. With the Austrian team, she participated in the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

Claudia Riegler is the sister of Manuela Riegler, who is also active as a snowboarder.

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