Josef Stiegler

Josef " Pepi " Stiegler ( born April 20, 1937 in Lienz ) is a former Austrian alpine skier. He was Olympic champion in 1964 and at the same time world champion in slalom.

Career

By profession, Stiegler was a photographer. His mother kept in Lienz a photo studio, his father was employed by the Austrian Post as drivers of buses. The first successes in skiing he celebrated in winter 1957. He was Austrian Junior Champion in slalom and in combination, won in Val Gardena downhill and combination and the blue stove downhill in Zermatt. In the season 1957/58 he won a total of seven races, including downhill, slalom and combination of Megève and the combination of Zermatt. The next winter he won the slalom in Megève and was third on Ganslernhang in Kitzbühel.

After he had so far only been at FIS -B race at the front, Stiegler succeeded in January 1960 in Wengen also his first victory at the important races. With second place in the downhill and slalom he won the combination of the Lauberhorn. Shortly afterwards, he finished second in the Kitzbühel slalom. At the Olympic Winter Games in 1960 in Squaw Valley Stiegler won behind the Swiss Roger dust the silver medal in the giant slalom. In slalom, he was fifth, but with the 15th place in the downhill, he fell just short of a combination medal.

In the winter of 1960/61, Stiegler won several important slalom races: he won in Wengen, as well as in Megeve, Chamonix and at the Arlberg - Kandahar race in Murren. The next winter he could only win the slalom in Bad Wiessee, he finished third in Kitzbühel. The World Cup 1960 in Chamonix was also disappointing. In slalom, he went only to the 20th place, so they let him not even start in giant slalom.

In the season 1962/63 Stiegler won although none of the important races, but won for the example in the slalom in Kranjska Gora. In January 1964 he first came in second in the giant slalom in Wengen, and then won the giant slalom in Spittal. The greatest success of his career, he celebrated then at the Olympic Winter Games in 1964 in Innsbruck. In the giant slalom, he came behind the Frenchman François Bonlieu and Karl Schranz to third place in the slalom, he was ahead of the two Americans Billy Kidd and Jimmy Heuga Olympic champion and world champion at the same time. The Austrian sports journalists voted him then to Austria's sportsman of the year.

After the games, Stiegler finished his career. A short time he worked as a trainer in the Austrian Ski Federation, 1965, he emigrated to the United States. He was the building of a ski school in the winter Jackson, Wyoming involved, which he headed until 1994. He was in the " U.S. in 2001 National Ski Hall of Fame ". His daughter was also a ski racer Resi Stiegler, just as his son Josef jun. ( " Seppi ," ).

Sporting successes

Olympic Winter Games

  • Squaw Valley 1960: 2 Giant Slalom, Slalom 5th, 15 downhill
  • Innsbruck 1964: 1 Slalom, Giant Slalom 3

World Championships

  • Squaw Valley 1960: 2 Giant Slalom, 4th combined, 5th Slalom, Downhill 15
  • Chamonix 1962: 20th slalom
  • Innsbruck 1964: 1 Slalom, Giant Slalom 3

Austrian Championships

Stiegler was four times Austrian Champion:

  • Slalom: 1960 and 1961
  • Giant Slalom: 1963
  • Combination: 1961

Awards

  • Austria's sportsman of the year 1964
  • Gold Decoration for Services to the Republic of Austria 1996
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