Wolfgang Loitzl
Wolfgang Loitzl (born 13 January 1980 in Bad Ischl ) is an Austrian ski jumper and former regular soldier in the Austrian army. With nine gold medals won ( seven in ski jumping World Cups, one each at the Olympics and at the Ski Flying World Championships ), he may still be considered as one of the most successful medalist Austria, however, these successes restrict one exception only to team gold.
Career
Wolfgang Loitzl took on January 6, 1997 in Bischofshofen for the first time at a ski jumping competition in the FIS World Cup in part. Although he was almost twelve years not win a single jumping, he quickly established himself as a reliable jumper with numerous podium and top 10 results, and thus became an essential pillar of the Austrian national team. He won at the 2001 World Championships gold with the team on the normal hill and bronze with the team from the large hill at the Ski Flying World Cup 2004 bronze with the team and at the 2005 World Championships gold with the team on the normal hill and the large hill. At the World Cup in Sapporo 2007 Austria was able to defend the title and Loitzl again won gold with the team on the large hill.
His first victory in a single competition he made in the 2008 /09 season. After four second places in November and December 2008, he reached on 1 January 2009 at the New Year's event of the Four Hills Tournament in Garmisch -Partenkirchen his first World Cup victory, taking four times the maximum score received for his second jump 20. On January 4, 2009, he also won the tour jumping on Bergisel in Innsbruck. In the final competition of the tour, on January 6, 2009 in Bischofshofen, its 142.5 - meter jump was seen in the first round as a perfect jump ( five times the Note 20) - which was previously managed only four jumpers. In the second round, he missed the mark narrowly and received for his 141.5 - meter jump four times the score mark 20 and once the rating score 19.5. So he set the record of Sven Hanna forest from 2003, who had also received 20 nine times during a jump competition, a. With the victory in Bischofshofen to Loitzl he guaranteed that the overall rating of the Four Hills Tournament 2008/09. In the Nordic World Ski Championships 2009, he was also world champion in singles on the normal hill. In addition, he also won with the team on the large hill gold. In November, he was awarded the Austrian Sportsman of the year 2009.
From a breakthrough as winning jumper but can not talk because he, apart from a World Cup victory ( also in January 2009) did not manage another victory. Loitzl's winning streak was impressive, but short. In his more than ten year career victories all fell in a period of 51 days. Following his last victory, the World Individual Championship title on the normal hill in 2009, he never came back even remotely near his impressive form by January / February 2009.
At the Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver in 2010, he reached the 11th place in jumping on the normal hill. From the large hill he jumped to 10th place. Together with Thomas Morgenstern, Andreas Kofler and Gregor Schlierenzauer, he won, ahead of Germany, the team jumping.
In August 2011, Wolfgang Loitzl ended his active service in the Austrian army, of which he was supported and funded since 2001.
Private
With his wife Marika, with whom he has been married since June 11, 2006 Wolfgang Loitzl has two sons. The family lives in Bad Mitterndorf.
Achievements
Four Hills Tournament
- Winner of the Four Hills Tournament 2008/ 09 with three individual wins
- 3rd place in the overall standings of the Four Hills Tournament 2009/2010