Franz Klammer facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Franz Klammer

Alpine skier
Klammer in 2009
Disciplines	Downhill, giant slalom, combined
Born	(1953-12-03) 3 December 1953 (age 71) Mooswald, Carinthia, Austria
Height	1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
World Cup debut	December 1972 (age 19)
Retired	March 1985 (age 31)
Olympics
Teams	2 – (1976, 1984)
Medals	1 (1 gold)
World Championships
Teams	5 – (1974–85) includes 1976 Olympics
Medals	3 (2 gold)
World Cup
Seasons	13 – (1973–85)
Wins	26 – (25 DH, 1 K)
Podiums	45 – (41 DH, 1 GS, 3 K)
Overall titles	0 – (3rd in 1975, 1977)
Discipline titles	5 – (5 DH: 1975–78, 1983)
Medal record Alpine skiing Representing  Austria World Cup race podiums Event 1st 2nd 3rd Downhill 25 10 6 Giant 0 0 1 Combined 1 0 2 Olympic Games Gold 1976 Innsbruck Downhill World Championships Gold 1974 St. Moritz Combined Gold 1976 Innsbruck Downhill Silver 1974 St. Moritz Downhill

Klammer winning at Kitzbühel in 1976

Franz Klammer (born 3 December 1953) is a famous former alpine ski racer from Austria. He was known for being super fast in the downhill event. He won the World Cup downhill title four times in a row from 1975 to 1978.

Franz Klammer also won a gold medal at the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria. He won the downhill race by a small amount, just 0.33 seconds! He won 25 World Cup downhill races in his career. This includes four wins at the famous Hahnenkamm race in Kitzbühel. He holds the record for the most wins on that full course.

Early Life and Skiing Start

Franz Klammer grew up on a farm in Mooswald, Carinthia, Austria. Like many kids in the mountains, he skied to school every winter day. His village didn't have ski lifts, so he would climb up hills behind his house to ski down.

He started racing when he was 14 years old, which is a bit later than some skiers. He raced in winter and worked on the family farm in summer. It was tough for him to join the Austrian ski team because skiers from Tyrol and Salzburg usually dominated it.

Franz first raced in the World Cup in December 1972 when he was 19. He finished 32nd in his first race because he was nervous. He competed in the World Cup for 13 seasons, from 1972 to 1985.

Franz Klammer married his wife, Eva, in 1979. They met in 1975 when he was at a training camp. They have two daughters, Sophie and Stephanie.

Franz Klammer's Skiing Career

Franz Klammer started showing his talent in the 1973 World Cup season. He finished second in a downhill race in St. Anton, Austria. The winner was Bernhard Russi from Switzerland, who was an Olympic champion. Klammer also got third place in a downhill race at St. Moritz and a giant slalom race at Mont Sainte-Anne. This was the only time he finished on the podium in a World Cup giant slalom.

In the next season (1974), he finished second overall in the downhill standings. He beat other top skiers like Roland Collombin and Bernhard Russi in some races.

Dominating the Downhill Races

In the 1975 season, Franz Klammer was almost unbeatable. He won every downhill race except one in Megève, France, where his ski came off. If that hadn't happened, he might have won the overall World Cup title that year. He even beat Olympic champion Bernhard Russi in a test race at Patscherkofel in January 1975.

When the 1976 Winter Olympics came around, 22-year-old Klammer was the favorite to win the downhill gold medal. The Olympics were in his home country, Austria, in Innsbruck. He had already won the last three downhill races before the Olympics.

In the Olympic downhill race, Franz Klammer started 15th. He knew that Bernhard Russi had set a very fast time. Klammer took big risks on the difficult course. He skied incredibly fast and won the gold medal by 0.33 seconds. The Austrian fans were thrilled! His winning time was much faster than the winner's time on the same course 12 years earlier.

World Cup Titles and Challenges

Even though Franz Klammer was amazing at downhill, he never won the overall World Cup title. This was because downhill was only one event, while other skiers could earn points in two technical events like slalom and giant slalom. The super-G race, another speed event, didn't become a World Cup event until later in his career.

At the end of the 1975 season, he had won 8 out of 9 downhill races. But he still finished third in the overall World Cup standings. He won the World Cup downhill title five times: in 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, and 1983. This is more than any other downhill skier.

After winning his fourth straight downhill title in 1978, Franz Klammer had a tough time for a few years. This might have been because his brother had a serious injury in a downhill race. Also, he changed his ski brand during this time.

He couldn't make the Austrian team for the 1980 Olympics, so he couldn't defend his gold medal. But he didn't give up! He worked very hard to make a comeback. In 1981, after changing skis again, he won a race in Val-d'Isère. The next season, he won his fifth World Cup Downhill title. In 1984, he won at Kitzbühel again, his fourth win there, at the age of 30.

At the 1984 Olympics in Sarajevo, he finished tenth, which was disappointing for him.

Klammer's Amazing Records

At his best, Franz Klammer won ten downhill races in a row, including his Olympic gold. He won 8 out of 9 races in the 1975 season. In total, he won 26 downhill races (25 World Cup and 1 Olympic). These achievements show he is one of the greatest downhill racers ever. For example, Karl Schranz had 20 wins over a longer career, while Klammer got 19 wins in less than three seasons.

In 2006, Franz Klammer was asked about his greatest achievement. He said that while his Olympic gold was famous, winning at Kitzbühel in 1984 was very special. He hadn't won there for seven years, so it felt like a big comeback.

He retired from international racing in March 1985, when he was 31 years old. Franz Klammer finished his career with 26 World Cup victories, 45 podium finishes (top three), and 87 top ten finishes.

Life After Skiing: Motor Racing

Right after he stopped alpine skiing, Franz Klammer started racing cars! He drove Mercedes-Benz cars in touring car racing all over Europe and even in Australia. In 1990, he won a race in the important European Touring Car Championship.

Franz Klammer's Legacy

Franz Klammer was a hero to ski fans in Austria and around the world. He helped make alpine ski racing very popular. People called him "The Kaiser" (which means "Emperor") and also the "Klammer Express."

He said his success came from being one of the first downhill skiers to "carve" a whole turn. This means he would smoothly cut into the snow with his skis, instead of skidding. Other famous skiers like Karl Schranz and Jean-Claude Killy used to skid more at the start of a turn.

American Olympic skier Bode Miller said that Franz Klammer's style and way of racing inspired him a lot.

Franz Klammer also started the Franz Klammer Foundation. This foundation helps athletes who have been seriously injured. He was inspired to do this by his younger brother, Klaus, who became paralyzed after a downhill crash at age 16.

World Cup Results

Here are some of Franz Klammer's World Cup achievements:

Season Titles

Franz Klammer won the World Cup Downhill title five times.

Season Standings

This table shows Franz Klammer's overall rankings in different World Cup disciplines each season.

Race Victories

Franz Klammer won 26 World Cup races in total.

Season	Date	Location	Discipline
1974	22 Dec 1973	Schladming, Austria	Downhill
1975	8 Dec 1974	Val-d'Isère, France	Downhill
	15 Dec 1974	St. Moritz, Switzerland	Downhill
	5 Jan 1975	Garmisch, West Germany	Downhill
	11 Jan 1975	Wengen, Switzerland	Downhill
	18 Jan 1975	Kitzbühel, Austria	Downhill
	26 Jan 1975	Innsbruck, Austria	Downhill
	9 Mar 1975	Jackson Hole, USA	Downhill
	21 Mar 1975	Val Gardena, Italy	Downhill
1976	12 Dec 1975	Madonna di Campiglio, Italy	Downhill
	10 Jan 1976	Wengen, Switzerland	Downhill
	11 Jan 1976		Combined
	17 Jan 1976	Morzine, France	Downhill
	25 Jan 1976	Kitzbühel, Austria	Downhill
	12 Mar 1976	Aspen, USA	Downhill
1977	17 Dec 1976	Val Gardena, Italy	Downhill
	8 Jan 1977	Garmisch, West Germany	Downhill
	15 Jan 1977	Kitzbühel, Austria	Downhill
	22 Jan 1977	Wengen, Switzerland	Downhill
	18 Feb 1977	Laax, Switzerland	Downhill
1978	11 Dec 1977	Val-d'Isère, France	Downhill
	11 Mar 1978	Laax, Switzerland	Downhill
1982	6 Dec 1981	Val-d'Isère, France	Downhill
1983	20 Dec 1982	Val Gardena, Italy	Downhill
1984	21 Jan 1984	Kitzbühel, Austria	Downhill

World Championship Results

This table shows Franz Klammer's results at the World Championships.

From 1948 through 1980, the Winter Olympics were also the World Championships for alpine skiing.
At the World Championships from 1954 through 1980, the combined was a "paper race" using the results of the three events (DH, GS, SL).

Olympic Results

This table shows Franz Klammer's results at the Olympic Games.

^ Klammer was an alternate on the 1980 team and did not compete.

See also

In Spanish: Franz Klammer para niños