At the intermediate time, he was behind Russi. There is tough and turny Patscherkofel above Innsbruck, site of the 1976 Olympics and the magnificent victory of the Austrian Franz Klammer in a performance that is considered the best single downhill run ever made. In the 1975 season he won 8 of 9 World Cup downhill races, including his first of three consecutive victories (197577) on the prestigious Streif on the Hahnenkamm at Kitzbhel. (Surely my fathers tape isnt the only known copy of this run in full?) Starting in 15th position, Klammer was the last of the top seeds and knew that Russi had set a blistering pace to lead by over a half-second. Championships in Schladming in February 2013. He won 8 of 9 during the 1975 season and also won 19 of 23, 20 of 26 and 21 of 29 downhills. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Enter your email address to get the news and post directly to your e-mail. Klammer won the World Cup downhill title five times: 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978 and 1983 twice more than the next best downhiller. Klammer finished fourth overall in 1976, third in 1977, and fifth in 1978.[3]. A great career only becomes exceptional with the ultimate title an Olympic gold medal. But he bounced back with ferocity, and resumed his onward march. Franz Klammer produced one of the most thrilling moments in alpine racing history with his reckless gold-medal run on the treacherous Patscherkofel downhill course at Innsbruck, Austria in February 1976. Amazingly, the victory comes eight years after his Olympic Games victory in Innsbruck. So I won it.. Two or three times we tried to bring a good story. Many of the top guns failed to control their line in the tricky parts of the course. It was always a big goal for me to be like Franz Klammer. He would win 31 downhills in World Cup competition. This can only be described as a Kamikaze run on the edge of suicide. Nobody was doing anything. The following season he regained the World Cup Downhill title, his fifth, followed by the 1984 victory at Kitzbuehel, his fourth on the Hahnenkamm. Entering the 1976 Winter Olympics, the 22-year-old Klammer was the favourite to take the gold medal in the downhill at Innsbruck in his native Austria. Her last victoryin the Olympic downhill at Lake Placid in 1980was particularly emotional and a great story, too. Alongside the ski track outside Innsbruck, 60,000 fans lined the piste. Now the snow has arrived to give today's heroes a chance to shine on a. There is Schladming in Austria, where crowds of 30,000 or more stand along its wild drop-off schuss to the finish. Somehow he survived, etching his name into history with a .33-second margin over Russi. He also called other sports. Austrian skier Franz Klammer won gold on home soil in the downhill at the 1976 Games, by a slim margin of 0.33 seconds. When I started, the course was basically ruined and I knew I had only a small chance to win, he said. His five World Cup downhill titles (1975 1978, 1983) are still more than any other skier in history (no one else even has four). Every set of Austrian eyes were tuned in to ORF across the far corners of the land. So that was the important thing., They were married in 1979. The story of a day like no other We would be right to consider him the greatest downhill skier of all time. Right: Schwarzenegger and Maierat the FIS Alpine WorldChampionships in Schladming in February 2013. Memorable Moments. First of all, biopics fail because they are almost like passion plays. He won his first aged only 19 in 1973 and including four victories in the Hahnenkamm at Kitzbuhel. During casting, Schmied and casting director Nicole Schmidt looked for actors and actresses right down to their age and the details of their regional dialect something tricky that changes over time. Kids call the Jamaican . He won a total of 25 World Cup downhills a record Lindsey Vonn broke last year. Innsbruck 1976 | Olympic Winter games. Your email address will not be published. He retired from international competition at age 31.Klammer finished with 26 World Cup victories, 45 podiums and 87 top ten finishes (71 downhill, 5 combined, 11 giant slalom). He met fans who vividly re-lived their own experiences of Feb. 5, 1976. I went all the way up to the top. As I approached it, I made a last-second decision to go for it instead of following my usual rounder line. Klammer was just 19 when he burst onto the scene in 1973, skiing to three World Cup podiums. It includes the original US broadcast commentary from ABC. And then I came down. At the 1984 Olympics in Sarajevo, (then Yugoslavia, now Bosnia), Klammer finished a disappointing tenth on a less-than-challenging course on Bjelanica. The Swiss favorite came in third this time, behind Moser-Proell and silver medalist Hanni Wenzel, who took gold in slalom and GS. Racing skis had changed appreciably. During the evening, Witt expressed her desire to ski once with Alberto, who had just collected his third Olympic title in giant slalom at Val dIsre. Franz Klammer won the Downhill skiing event in 4 consecutive World Cup seasons from 1975 to 1978. Klammer, age 19, followed this up with a third at St. Moritz and a third in the giant slalom at Mont Sainte-Anne (the only time he finished on the podium in a World Cup Giant Slalom in his career). The screams of thousands of spectators must have been heard for miles. They recreated the old start house, put up old course fencing and built a finish area complete with banners and fans in period clothing. Klammer dominated the downhill event for four consecutive World Cup seasons (1975-78). But she was always a huge support from the beginning, sitting always in the background and just being there. We had briefly seen Witt during our walk under the crowded stands, as she was exercising with her trainer, Jutta Mueller. Plus historical audio featuring ABC sportscaster Frank Gifford on the 1976 Innsbruck Olympics and the gold medal Franz Klammer downhill run that inspired this trip. After that, he was known as The Herminator. Thats what I liked.. To learn more, please visit www.franzweber.com Show. With the Super-G, as a second speed race, not existing at the time, Klammer's career was only downhill (apart from a world title in the combined event in 1974), which explains why despite his overwhelming domination, the Austrian skier, born on 3 December 1953 in Mooswald (Carinthia), was never able to compete for the large general classification globe in the World Cup in an era particularly characterised by the success of the Swede Ingemar Stenmark. Across all of Austria, there was nary a single person on a village street. The Swiss rival, Phillippe Roux stood third at 1:46:69, Italys Herbert Plank second at 1:46:59, and the magnificent Swiss, Bernhard Russi first at 1:46:06. Four years later, they met for dinner and a private ski lesson. Russi was selected to design the course by Jean-Claude Killy, co-president of the 1992 Olympic organizing committee, who used to ski on that part of the Bellevarde slope as a kid. He nearly went down on the first curve, but saved it on one ski. Franz is a testimonial for skiing, said Kresse. Alpine Skiing Legend Franz Klammer Relives His 1976 Olympic Run | ISOS006 In Search of Speed 8.67K subscribers Subscribe 822 Share 182K views 8 years ago For your throwback Thursday enjoyment. In 1975 and 1976 he was the best downhill skier in the world. This time, Alberto could not attend her performance, but Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf was sitting next to me. His fans adored his down-to-earth personality and his aggressive style. Downhill courses are the monsters of alpine skiing: 9,000-foot-long beasts with steep pitches that combine to build tremendous speed. Its about skiing to school each day, always enjoying that feeling of sliding on snow. Hes let his skis do the talking over the years and has won a place in the hearts of Austrians well, to a degree. Interestingly, none of the well-known technicians on the tour, like multiple overall World Cup champion Marc Girardelli or local favorite Franck Piccard, the 1988 Super G Olympic champion, clocked the fastest downhill time on race day. More Memorable Moments. He was adorable, said Witt of her time with La Bomba. Nobody had ever had a string of victories like that. Each competitor who followed failed to best his time, until there was only one skier left who was capable of beating him: Franz Klammer. He made his World Cup debut at the age of 19 in 1972 at the Val Gardena downhill: he finished ninth in the training run for the race, but could only manage 32nd place on race day due to nerves. Where to find Franz Klammer 1976 Innsbruck downhill video? At 1.35 is when he takes a line that no other skier dared to on the day and that is to cut harder left, slingshotting him forward faster. There were some hot meetings within the Austrian squad, but the other racers didnt want to miss their chance for an Olympic medal just a few hours before the start of the show. ago I remember being a kid seeing this live and thinking how close to death he pushed himself. Bobsleigh. Winner of eight of the nine downhill races on the World Cup tour in 1975, Klammer was the favourite at the 1976 Olympics but faced stiff . One of the most important things I got out of sport were friendships, said Klammer. To understand the 1976 Olympic downhill, you need to look back a few years in time. We met in Tunisia, in Africa, on the beach, recalled Klammer. Klammer started racing at the relatively late age of 14, competing in the winter whilst working on the family farm during the summer after he dropped out of school. Franz everyone knows him!, In his heart, Kresse believed in the story. One of the most exciting sports events I have ever witnessed was Franz Klammers 1976 Winter Olympic run for the gold in the downhill. I knew I only had a small chance to win, he, told the author. 1. He would be the last of the real contenders to go off, an advantage in that he would know what time was needed, but a disadvantage because of the damage done to the course by the first 14 skiers. Is she also French? I asked him at the 2013 World Cup season start at Soelden. Klammer dominated the downhill event for four consecutive World Cup seasons (197578). I knew I only had a small chance to win, hetold the author. Franz Klammer's downhill exploits from Insbruck 1976 Restless Volleyball men's Final Yugoslavia vs Russia at Sydney 2000 Should aliens compete at the Olympic Games Our kids casters pick their preferred team to participate at Olympic Games Kids Call Franz Klammer's downhill exploits from Insbruck 1976 The course was rougher when a nervous Klammer pushed himself out of the starting hut. She never came to the races. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. While much can be said about fame, few superstar ski racers started their careers just to seek glory. Gifford hosted "Wide World of Sports," covered several Olympics -- his call of Franz Klammer's gold-medal run in 1976 is considered a broadcasting masterpiece -- and announced a record 411 Monday . He was the gold medalist at the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, winning the downhill at Patscherkofel by a margin of 0.33 seconds with a time of 1:45.73. Ive never seen so much pressure put on one man my entire life, opined ABCs Bob Beattie. A season earlier in 1974-75, he won an unprecedented eight World Cup downhills. We were lucky to get him here.. Ill call him.. But the most important week in my life! Once more, it was Draggan, working then for CBS, who set up the encounter in a nice restaurant in the French resort. She finished second in downhill and giant slalom behind the unknown Swiss teenager Marie-Therese Nadig, who had never reached any major podium before the 1972 Olympics. The first choice to play the role of Franz was Julian Waldner. 2 Years of Sipping Sports A Sip of Sports. And so this was, for me, the spark that lit the project. This one was different. I think he is skiing right now at Sun Valley and I know his ski instructor. This is all the sweeter when it is won in front of more than 60,000 focused supporters and millions of Austrians gathered in front of their TV sets across the country. (Due to the high cost of postage, this offer is limited to North American residents only.). In an interview before the Games, La Bomba told the press that his dad, Franco, might buy him a Ferrari if he clinched two gold medals in Canadaa mission he accomplished by winning the slalom and the GS. Bill Johnson was born in Los Angeles, California, on March 30, 1960, and moved with his family to Boise, Idaho, when he was seven.He learned to ski at Bogus Basin in the late 1960s. Franz KLAMMER. The hardest thing was when I first ran the course to try and get it all figured out, laughed Rahlves. We all just knew he was going to crash. The Austrian set an impressive record of 62 victories and 115 podium finishes on the World Cup tour in only 175 competitions. Franz Klammer (born 3 December 1953) is a former champion alpine ski racer from Austria. So I really wanted to give the audience a real feel for the people in the story.. First off, Patscherkofel was quite a placid downhill run compared to the Hahnenkamm. The mind of a downhill skier - Franz Klammer Innsbruck 1976 | Olympic Winter games. He was the gold medalist at the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, winning the downhill at Patscherkofel by a margin of 0.33 seconds with a time of 1:45.73. Ortlieb is a well-known name in Alsace; I think I know some of his relatives, explained Lang, who was also born in Alsace in 1920. Just past halfway he nearly went off the course, but he kept picking up speed, reaching near 80 miles per hour at the bottom of the course. They were at my grandparents (house) and they watched the race with the neighbors. Thats what I liked.. Even today, he is emotional in telling it. I liked his way of approaching that. Viewers will find a film filled with suspense and an endearing love story. The 1976 Olympic downhill was arguably the most anticipated Winter Olympic event in history a matchup with the veteran, defending gold medalist Bernhard Russi of Switzerland, and the upstart young Austrian farm boy Franz Klammer. At 60, Franz Klammer remains a charismatic and ruggedly dishy figure, along Liam Neeson lines. The next one minute, 45.73 seconds would change Franz Klammers life forever. Franz was getting treated like a king coming into that race, said Rahlves. He would finish as the top downhill skier a record five times (1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1983). Rahlves got his own revenge, of sorts, just two months later when he opened the World Championships in St. Anton with a super-G victory ahead of Austrias Stephan Eberharter and Maier a day that stopped the world in the hearts of Austrian ski racing fans. Hoping for a low start number in the draw, Klammer drew 15 last in the top seed. I couldnt believe my luck.. Austria in February 2013. Franz legendary race was one month before I was born, he said. Kids watch Olympic curling for the first time Kids Call. Photo caption:Italian superstarAlberto Tomba won gold in slalom and GS at Calgary, then cheered from the side of the rink as Katarina Witt of East Germany claimed her second Olympic figure-skating title. You grow up with it., The most important week in my life! They tried to do some kind of a glamour biopic.. While Klammer had been consistent in his success on the skis, Fischer and his team had innovated a new product. In 1990, Klammer won a round of the prestigious European Touring Car Championship. The older generation of established alpine speed specialists from that timeled by Swiss racers Daniel Mahrer, William Besse and 1991 downhill FIS world champion Franz Heinzerhad great difficulties in negotiating La Face with their traditional style, which was to enter the turns at full speed and throw the skis sideways to change direction. I knew I will do it, he explains, I was full of confidence, I knew I can pull it off, and at any time, I learned how to win a race: concentrate, just on your race, you and the mountain and not thinking about anybody else. The feats of this exceptional downhill skier include this total domination of the 1974-1975 season, with eight victories in the nine races of the programme, a run, straddling the two following seasons, of 10 consecutive wins and another record: five small discipline crystal globes, won consecutively from 1975 to 1978, then in 1983. Finally he also skied a line in the final pitch which Im sure he never recognised. This was the 1976 Winter Olympic Games in Innsbruck - the men's downhill, the blue riband event - and the yellow flash was Franz Klammer, Austrian national hero and pre-race favourite. Sporting Legends. Sep 26, 2013 - This is nearly the entire Franz Klammer Gold Medal Run from the Innsbruck Winter Olympics of 1976. Ever since I can remember, I have been on skis. Another surprise was revealed later when my father, World Cup founder Serge Lang, intrigued by Patricks last name, discovered that he was a double national: Austrian, as he was born in that country from an Austrian mother, but also French through his dad, a cook from Alsace, who had emigrated to Lech to work, raise a family and run the Montana Hotel there. NEW YORK - Pro Football Hall of Famer Frank Gifford has died. He could sense it himself. He was always going for the victory. Franz Klammer 1976 Innsbruck - The Greatest Downhill Run of All Time - FULL UNEDITED!! He was from Carinthia, the right age, almost the right build, he won a couple of ski races when he was a boy. Legend has it that at the top just before Franz left the starting gate he asked the timing official What do I need to do to win? and the guy responded Kill Yourself. His career total is 26 downhill wins: 25 World Cup and 1 Olympic. And that was the main obstacle to tackle before developing a script.. Mittermaier is married to fellow pro skier Christian Neureuther, and their son, Felix Neureuther, is also a pro skier. He could really win in this kind of Klammer style. He remembered that day in 1976 as a six-year-old boy, crowded together with his kindergarten classmates watching on a miniature television at school. Klammer dominated the downhill event for four consecutive World Cup seasons (1975-78). After his 1978 World Cup win, Klammer's performances stagnated for several years, not winning a World Cup race until 1981. Ian Wooldridge the long-time sports writer for the London Daily Mail summed up Klammers feat best: The greatest single sporting achievement in my lifetime and no doubt beyond.. When I went out of the starting gate, I knew I was going to win that race, said Klammer. Jean-Claude Killy. The crowd went nuts as the announcers in ABCs commentator boothFrank Gifford, Bob Beattie and their special host Jackie Stewart, the former Formula One world car-racing championtold the world the results. School playgrounds were quiet and the capital of Vienna was empty. The best example is Austrias Hermann Maier, one of the greatest personalities in alpine ski racing. Franz Klammer. Some of ski racings greatest characters have attracted even more attention from the media and the crowds, thanks to nicknames invented by fans, friends or reporters. But Pepi Fischer wanted more. When I told my mother that Im doing this film, she said all these memories came up. Associated Press Russi calls the race, which was featured in the recently released film "Chasing the Line,". His tiny village of Mooswald, north of Villach, was situated in the mountains but without a ski lift. Schranz didnt want to leave Japan alone and he put pressure on the entire team to fly back home with him. He was really experienced and I learned so much from Gerald in the sense that he told me whats going on in the minds of downhill skiers and how they how they how they operate.. And then I completely changed the line. He was the gold medalist at the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, winning the downhill at Patscherkofel by a margin of 0.33 seconds with a time of 1:45.73. ^ Klammer was an alternate on the 1980 team and did not compete. 1- 1980 USA vs USSR Olympic Hockey Game. Challenge in hand, Pochlatko took the film concept to director and screenwriter Andreas Schmied of Samsara Filmproduktion. I was not sure how much time I gained or lost, yet it gave me so much determination that I kept risking everything until the last meter. Everybody was in front of the television set. And still, he does everything right! Its like Hermann Maier for me his program was at such a high level and he had everything taken care of for him. [] 3. While the 1976 downhill gold medal is his calling card, the long term athletic success he achieved has rarely been rivaled, even a half-century later. Heres the scorecard: 25 World Cup downhill wins the most by any man in history (Stephan Eberharter has 18). With the original incredible commentary by ABC USA broadcasters Frank Gifford and Bob Beattie. The mind of a downhill skier - Franz Klammer. I knew that Daron understood how Klammer was skiing, said Salmina. Just the idea of making a film about Franz Klammer is not very easy from a filmmakers perspective, he said. And Schmied and Schmidt hit it out of the park. Hermann Maier. Thats how I won that day., Photo caption:The race course was rough and the pressure was onwhen Klammer pushed out of the starting hut in thedownhill. The love story proved to be a real one, focusing on the role of Klammers now wife of 42 years, Eva. 15, a yellow suit, red shoes and a red helmet with a white stripe, Klammer set off to shouting from the crowd. After trailing Russi by .20 of a second at the second intermediate time he made up more than half a second on the bottom portion of the course to win in 1:45.73. I've won so many things, without the Olympic title it would have been a good career, but not a great career. The Olympic Games plus the FIS World Championships, Franz Klammer was also crowned World Champion on that day. Klammer spoke for all skiers in one of the final scenes. Even his coaches were tense. Second in the season-long battle for the downhill crystal globe in 1973, he turned up the heat in 1975 winning eight World Cup downhills and taking the season title. Tim also talked directly to Arnie, who asked him for Maiers phone number. Klammer has been married to his wife, Eva, since 1979: the couple met in 1975 when he was in Tunisia at a fitness camp with the Austrian ski team. Swiss favorite Bernhard Russi, who two years earlier had won Olympic gold in Sapporo, was 13th. Franz Klammer and the 1976 Olympic Downhill [], Your email address will not be published. In December, 1998, he raced a World Cup super-G on the fabled course. I was so focused, I was so concentrated, just on the run and then half-way down, I was looking at the crowd, kind of now I'd better do something to win the race. Franz Klammer - 1976 Olympic Gold Medal Run franzweberinc 113 subscribers 509K views 13 years ago The greatest downhill of ALL time! And she says, well, what are you doing? I said, well, Im skiing. Are you winning something? she says. Eight years after Sapporo, La Proell had enjoyed a superb revenge. Showings in the United States and Canada are pending. Like Muhammad Ali for boxing, Wayne Gretzky for ice hockey or Tiger Woods for golf. The greatest downhill run of ALL Time! He would also have to live with personal challenges. Alpine Skiing Legend Franz Klammer Relives His 1976 Olympic Run | ISOS006. Italy's Gustav Thni defeated Sweden's Ingemar Stenmark in the finals and won his fourth overall title in five years. It was a brilliant lifetime story of a young boy who had stunning athletic success. Franz Klammer - 1976 Olympic Downhill Gold Medal performance Rambo Nov 4, 2009 1 2 Next Nov 4, 2009 #1 Rambo Member Joined Sep 8, 2008 Messages 890 Points 16 Location Binghamton, NY Anybody remember this? The Klammer story, yah, it was epic, said Schmied, a Styrian-born writer and director who, like most Austrians, was on skis before he was two. And it meant 100% commitment. Born: Dec. 3, 1958 (Mooswald, Carinthia, Austria) At the finish line, Franz Klammer started by looking at the huge crowd. Darren Glen 1.1M views 3 years ago Frank Gifford discusses covering Franz Klammer's Olympic. In the 1976 Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria, the stakes rose. Ryan didnt need much time to get hold of Schwarzeneggers Austrian-born ski instructor, Adi Erber, and to organize a crew to do an interview with the movie star. The downhill was to be run down the face of Patscherkofel, one of the premier downhill tracks in the world. Maybe nobody knows them, but I think everybody will know them after the movie is out because theyre so good., Klammer and Eva spent significant time with the screenwriters and the actors, especially Waldner. [4], Immediately after his retirement from alpine competition, Klammer took up motor racing, and was soon involved in touring car racing, driving Mercedes-Benz saloons all over Europe and racing professionally as far away as Australia. So she really had no clue who I was.. Schmied literally grew up with the Klammer legend. Everyone got nervous after defending Olympic champion Bernhard Russi from Switzerland set the best time after a nearly flawless run. He won 4 more times in 1976 leading up to the Olympics. I remember watching it live on TV as a kid and it was an electrifying performance. Klammer took heavy risks on the treacherous piste, skied on the edge of disaster and won by 0.33 seconds to the delight of the Austrian fans. Apparently they also threw quite a party at Arnies suite at the Hyatt Hotel to celebrate the wins. I remember the race we were in the living room watching on TV in black and white, said Salmina, who was 11 at the time. In a statement released by NBC News on Sunday, his family said Gifford died suddenly at his Connecticut home of. At the 1976 Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria, Russi nearly retained his Olympic title with a very fast time in the downhill at Patscherkofel, but took the silver medal. Franz Klammer (born 3 December 1953) is a former champion alpine ski racer from Austria. As a sportscaster Mr. Beattie was renowned for his call, with Frank Gifford, of the Austrian Franz Klammer's gold medal-winning downhill race at the 1976 Winter Games in Innsbruck,. Behind that, though, is a true love story that contributed to his athletic success. Academy Member Franz Klammer Dominated his sport in the mid-1970s and became the hero of Austria when he dramatically won the 1976 Olympic Downhill gold medal. Bernhard and I, we are really close friends and appreciate each others company. Chasing the Line. They shared an embrace, some laughs and watched a film that showcased the sport that formed the DNA of their lives on snow. After his victories, Alberto told me hed be pleased to watch East Germanys attractive superstar Katarina Witt competing at the ice arena in Calgary. He was able to hold his line on a difficult course, while established speed specialists struggled. Klammer Express, his other nickname, continued to dominate his sport until 1978, then he suffered a loss of momentum which led notably to him not being selected for the very strong Austrian downhill team for the Lake Placid Games in 1980. 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