Silvan Zurbriggen
Silvan Zurbriggen ( born August 15, 1981 in Brig in Valais ) is a Swiss ski racer. He was at the beginning of his career, a slalom specialist, but has evolved over the years into an all-rounder. His greatest successes are the second place in the slalom at the World Championships in 2003 and third place in the Super Combined at the Olympic Winter Games 2010.
Biography
At the age of three years was Zurbriggen, who is distantly related to Pirmin Zurbriggen and Heidi, for the first time on skis; He played his first race at age nine. As a 15 -year-old he was taken on Skigymnasium in the Austrian Stams. In 1998 he returned to the inclusion in the C- squad of Swiss-Ski back to Switzerland back to study further in Engelberg. Where he graduated in 2001 from its economy Matura.
The first FIS races contested Zurbriggen in November 1997, the first victory at this level let another two years away. In the European Cup he came from December 2000 on the application. At the Junior World Championship 2001 in Verbier, he finished second in the downhill. The following year he won three European Cup races. His debut in the World Cup he gave on 21 January 2002 in the slalom in Kitzbuehel, but where he failed to qualify for the second round itself.
World Cup points brought Zurbriggen for the first time on 24 November 2002, when 13 of the slalom in Park City. With further good performances he managed to qualify for the 2003 World Cup in St. Moritz. There he won rather unexpected silver medal in the slalom, Ivica Kostelic behind the Croats. In the 2003 /04 season he was able to establish itself among the world leaders, each with a fifth place in the slalom and combination of Kitzbühel as the best results. On 13 December 2004 he scored a second in the slalom in Sestriere his first podium in a World Cup race. As a fifth in the downhill in Bormio two weeks later he showed his talent as an all rounder.
In a training accident in August 2005, Zurbriggen broken ribs and a concussion moved to. Due to the shortened preparation time, it did not improve in the following season, 2005/ 06; a sixth place was his best result. Better was the 2006/07 season with eight finishes in the top ten, including two podium finishes in the super combinations of Wengen and Kvitfjell. On the downhill in Val Gardena on 15 December 2007 Zurbriggen crashed heavily and retired while a torn ACL to. For this reason, no one could deny race for the rest of the season more.
In the 2008 /09 season Zurbriggen was a successful comeback and he established himself especially in the combinations among the world leaders. After he had become Wengen Third, he decided on 25 January 2009, the classic combination of Kitzbühel Hahnenkamm for themselves and thus celebrated his first World Cup victory. In the combined World Cup standings, he had to admit defeat just Carlo Janka. Zurbriggen showed in the 2009/10 season, especially in the slalom consistent and good; with two second places he was finally third in the discipline standings. At the 2010 Winter Olympics he won the bronze medal in the super combined.
In winter 2010/11 Zurbriggen was especially good results on in Downhill and Super -G. He won on December 18, 2010 Departure from Val Gardena ( where he had been three years earlier seriously injured ). At the end of the year he led in the meantime to the overall World Cup, until it was clearly obsolete in January of Ivica Kostelic. Finally Zurbriggen was sixth in the World Cup and fourth in the downhill World Cup. At the World Championships 2011 in Garmisch -Partenkirchen, he remained without winning a medal. In the World Cup season 2011/12 Zurbriggen denied no more slaloms. However, the specialization in the speed disciplines did not yield the desired results, with the exception of a third place in the combination of Kitzbühel. In the two following winters stagnated its services, which is why he came in the European Cup increasingly used. He failed to qualify for the 2014 Olympics, but decided in the winter 2013/14 with three wins the European Cup downhill rating for themselves.
To Zurbriggens hobbies include breeding of Eringerkühen.
Achievements
Olympic games
- Turin 2006: 15 Slalom
- Vancouver 2010: 3rd Super Combined, Slalom 12
World Championships
- St. Moritz 2003: 2nd Slalom, 5 combination
- Bormio 2005: 5 combination, 7 Slalom
- Åre 2007: 8 Super Combined, Super G 14
- Val d'Isere 2009: 4 Super Combined
- Garmisch -Partenkirchen 2011: 12 Downhill, 13 Super -G
- Schladming 2013: 6th exit, 7 Super Combined
World Cup ratings
- Season 2003/ 04: 7 Combined World Cup
- Season 2006/ 07: 4 Combined World Cup
- Season 2008/ 09: 2nd Combined World Cup
- Season 2009/ 10: 8 Overall World Cup, 3rd World Cup Slalom, 4th Combined World Cup
- Season 2010/ 11: 6 Overall World Cup downhill World Cup 4, 4th Combined World Cup
- Season 2011/12: 6 Combined World Cup
World Cup wins
European Cup
- Season 2001/ 02: 4 slalom rating
- Season 2002/ 03: 4 slalom rating
- Season 2013/14: 3rd overall, 1st exit summary
- 10 podiums, 5 wins:
Junior World Championships
- Quebec 2000: 11 Slalom, 20 downhill, giant slalom 42
- Verbier 2001: 2nd exit, 13th Super -G, Giant Slalom 47