Bernhard Knauß

Bernhard Knauss ( born June 25, 1965 in Schladming ) is a former Austrian alpine skier. He belonged until 1988 to the squad of the Austrian Ski Federation, before he was released from this because Erfolgslosigkeit. Knauß then went into the U.S. professional tour, there was an immediate success, was six professional world champion and won three times the overall standings. In 1996 he moved, now starting for Slovenia, back to the amateurs. About FIS, European and World Cup races, he secured a place in the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano.

Biography

Already Knauß ' grandfather and father had been good skiers, who had taken part in local races. The father worked as a clerk at the Planai lift. Like its sibling, including the successful World Cup in multiple World Championships and Olympics medalist Hans Knauss, Bernhard Knauss came early for skiing. He belonged to the Winter Sports Club Schladming and was included in the squad of the Austrian Ski Federation ( Austrians ) to students and club racing in 1983. He won several FIS races and was at the Austrian Championships 1986 Second in the combination. Also in Europe and Nor -Am Cup and the World Cup he was used, but remained without major success. Knauss had because of chronic joint inflammation sidelined for several months, not supplied the required services from the Austrians and was finally released in 1988 from the Austrian Ski Federation squad. For the time being the last time he started in December 1988 in the Slalom in St. Anton am Arlberg in the World Cup. He got there by the former men's motorsport director Hans Pum a last chance to remain in the Austrian Ski Team, but these could not use a loss.

In order to continue his skiing career anyway, Knauß went to the United States to the professionals of the U.S. Pro ​​Ski Tour, a racing series outside the World Ski Association. He sold his car to finance the flight and first starts, and has appeared at the beginning of January 1989 for the first time in the pros. There was Knauß from the start is successful, already at its first race weekend he celebrated his first victory. At the end of winter 1988/1989, he finished fifth overall. In the next few years Knauß became the most successful participants in the U.S. Pro ​​Tour. With over 80 race wins until the end of his professional career, he won 1990/1991, 1991/ 1992, 1992/1993 three times in a row overall, after he had occupied 1989/1990 second place behind the Vorarlberg Roland Pfeifer. Both the number of his victories as well as with the amount of prize money he set new records on the Pro Tour. In addition, he was from 1990 to 1995 six times World Professional Champion. Among his colleagues Knauß enjoyed not only because of its successes high reputation. As the only overall winner of the Tour, he was honored with the Bubby Kenney Award for role model of sportsmanship, an award whose winner will be chosen by the racers themselves.

After he had increasingly lost the motivation to further participation in the U.S. Pro ​​Tour in Austria and his first child had been born, in 1996, he moved his permanent residence again in the Steiermark. From ski racing but the then 31 -year-old did not want to retire. With the goal of the Olympic Winter Games in Nagano in 1998, he sought a return to the amateurs. Knauss was able to support the Slovenian men's national team coach Tomaž Cerkovnik, against whom he was once driven on the pro tour, train with the Slovenian team and was awarded Slovenian citizenship. From the winter 1996/1997 he took for Slovenia regular competitor, but after consulting obtaining the amateur status he had at first FIS races, beginning with the European Cup. In February 1997, Knauss won two European Cup giant slalom in Sella Nevea and Altausee, in the following season 1997/ 1998 he started already in the World Cup. The best result to him there succeeded a twelfth place in the giant slalom in Val d'Isere, which eventually filed for an Olympic nomination. In the Olympic giant slalom but Bernhard Knauss fell out in the first passage, while his brother Hans narrowly missed the bronze medal in fourth. At the end of the season 1997/1998 Bernhard Knauss finally finished his career.

With the ski racing he remained thereafter closely linked: Knauß was initially racing boss of the company and was founded in 2007 Volkl Racing Head of the Italian Tecnica Group, where he is responsible for the brands Blizzard and Tecnica.

Achievements

World Cup

• 2 rankings in the top 20

European Cup

• 4th place in the Giant Slalom Ranking 1996/1997
• 2 race wins ( giant slalom in Sella Nevea and Altausee in February 1997)

U.S. Pro ​​Ski Tour

• Three overall victories in the seasons 1990/1991, 1991/ 1992, 1992/1993
• 6 world titles