Harald Kleinhofer
Harald Klein Hofer ( born May 21, 1974 in Bruck an der Mur ) is a former Austrian natural track luge. Living in St. Sebastian Styrian formed until his resignation in 2005 with Gerhard Muhlbacher a doubles pair. They won the bronze medal at the 2003 World Cup, reached a total of eleven podium finishes in World Cup races and was twice Austrian national champion.
Career
Harald Klein Hofer and his doubles partner Gerhard Muhlbacher took Rautavaara in 1998 for the first time at a World Cup, where she reached the fourth place. The next year, however, they were disqualified at the European Championships 1999 in Szczyrk in the first run. The first podium in the World Cup get them in January 2000, when they were later in Garmisch -Partenkirchen third and a week in Second Gummer. Another week later, they achieved fifth place at the World Championship 2000 in Olang. In the overall World Cup they reached in the 1999/2000 season despite the two podiums only the seventh rank, because they took part after the World Cup only one of the three remaining World Cup races, but do not finish the race. After a long break - even at the World Cup 2001, she did not participate - they denied only in February 2001 in Moscow their next World Cup race, where she again reached the same second. At the season finale in Huttau they were fourth and thus in the overall World Cup of the season 2000/2001 Ninth. In addition, they were introduced in 2001 for the first time Austrian national champion in doubles; the second national title they won two years later.
In the World Cup season 2001/2002 Harald Klein and Gerhard Hofer Muhlbacher reached first two third places in Olang and then two second places in the parallel competition of Triesenberg and in Obergurgl, which they at times were in second place in the overall standings. But with the ranks seven and four in the last two competitions they still fell back to fourth in the overall World Cup. Also the fourth overall they achieved the following season 2002/2003. This winter, two third places in Obergurgl and Kindberg were their best World Cup results. After Kleinhofer / Muhlbacher had remained at the 2002 European Championships in Frantschach - Sankt Gertraud in fourth again almost without precious metal, they won at the 2003 World Cup in Železniki behind their teammate Wolfgang and Andreas Schopf and the Russians Pawel Porschnew and Ivan Lazarev, which this year won the overall World Cup, the bronze medal. After the first of the two races they were located in fourth again just behind the medals, but the second-best run time in the second round, they could still be improved to third place. For Harald Kleinhofer this was the biggest success in his career and in the same year he was awarded the Golden Medal of Merit of the Republic of Austria.
The 2003/2004 season began Kleinhofer / Muhlbacher with second place in Olang and third in Grande Prairie. But after they scored only two seventh and eighth place, which they finished fifth in the World Cup. At the 2004 European Championships in Huttau - Harald Kleinhofer the last major event - they were ninth. In the season 2004/2005 they only took on the two World Cup races in Oberperfuss, where she was sixth in the first race, but the second failed. Harald Kleinhofer then finished his career; Gerhard Muhlbacher started then with Christian treasure.
Harald Klein Hofer has worked as a wood carver, specializing in the area of mask carving and is committed to the preservation of the tradition.
Sporting successes
( with Gerhard Muhlbacher )
World Championships
- Rautavaara 1998: 4 doubles
- Olang 2000: 5 doubles
- Železniki 2003: 3 doubles
European Championships
- Frantschach 2002: 4 doubles
- Huttau 2004: 9 doubles
World Cup
- 4th place in doubles overall World Cup in the seasons 2001 /2002 and 2002/2003
- 5th place in doubles overall World Cup in the 2003/2004 season
- 11 podium finishes in World Cup race
Austrian Championships
- Austrian Champion in doubles in 2001 and 2003
Awards
- 2003: Golden Medal of Merit of the Republic of Austria