Gustav Thöni facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Gustav Thöni

Alpine skier
Thöni in 1972
Disciplines	Giant slalom, slalom, downhill, combined
Club	Fiamme Gialle
Born	(1951-02-28) 28 February 1951 (age 74) Trafoi, South Tyrol, Italy
Height	173 cm (5 ft 8 in)
World Cup debut	11 December 1969 (age 18)
Retired	March 1980 (age 29)
Olympics
Teams	3 (1972, 1976, 1980)
Medals	3 (1 gold)
World Championships
Teams	6 (1970–80) (includes three Olympics)
Medals	7 (5 gold)
World Cup
Seasons	11 (1970–80)
Wins	24
Podiums	69
Overall titles	4 (1971–73, '75)
Discipline titles	5 (3 GS, 2 SL)
Medal record World Cup race podiums Event 1st 2nd 3rd Slalom 8 15 9 Giant 11 7 8 Downhill 0 1 1 Combined 4 2 2 Parallel 1 0 0 International alpine ski competitions Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 1 2 0 World Championships 5 2 0 Olympic Games Gold 1972 Sapporo Giant slalom Silver 1972 Sapporo Slalom Silver 1976 Innsbruck Slalom World Championships Gold 1972 Sapporo Combined Gold 1972 Sapporo Giant slalom Silver 1972 Sapporo Slalom Gold 1974 St. Moritz Giant slalom Gold 1974 St. Moritz Slalom Gold 1976 Innsbruck Combined Silver 1976 Innsbruck Slalom

Gustav Thöni (born February 28, 1951) is a famous Italian alpine ski racer who is now retired. He was one of the best skiers in the world during the 1970s.

Gustav Thöni's Early Life and Career Start

Gustav Thöni was born in a beautiful mountain area of Italy called South Tyrol. Specifically, he grew up in a small village named Trafoi. Today, he runs a hotel there.

Thöni is known as one of Italy's greatest skiers ever. He won three Olympic medals and four overall World Cup titles. He achieved these four titles in just five years during the early 1970s. Only a few other skiers have won as many or more overall titles.

Dominating the Slalom and Giant Slalom Races

In the early 1970s, Gustav Thöni was the top skier in technical events. These events include slalom and giant slalom. His first World Cup race was in December 1968, when he was just 17 years old. He finished 40th in the giant slalom.

His first big win came in December 1969, at the start of the next season. He won a giant slalom race in France. As a teenager, he had an amazing first full season in 1970. He won four races and was on the podium nine times. He finished third overall that year.

Thöni then won the overall World Cup title for three years in a row, from 1971 to 1973. He won it again in 1975. After his time, other great skiers like Ingemar Stenmark and Alberto Tomba became the top technical skiers.

World Championship Successes

In 1974, Thöni finished second in the World Cup to his friend Piero Gros. However, that same year, he won two world titles. He won both the giant slalom and slalom at the 1974 World Championships. These world championship results were not counted in the World Cup standings at that time.

Trying Out Downhill Skiing

Even though he focused on technical races, Thöni sometimes competed in downhill races. Downhill is a speed event where skiers go very fast down a long course. His best downhill finish was second place in Austria in January 1975. He lost to Austrian legend Franz Klammer by only one-hundredth of a second. This close race was so exciting that it inspired a movie called Un centesimo di secondo (One Hundredth of a Second). Gustav Thöni even appeared in the movie himself!

Thöni also won several combined events during his career. Combined events usually include both a downhill and a slalom race. He won combined world championship titles in 1972 and 1976.

Later Career and Retirement

Gustav Thöni's last slalom victory was in March 1975. He won the final race of that season, a parallel slalom, which helped him secure the overall title. His last giant slalom win was in January 1976. His final World Cup victory was in a combined event in January 1977.

His last time on a World Cup podium was in February 1979, where he finished third in a slalom race. He competed in the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, finishing eighth in the slalom.

Thöni retired from World Cup racing in March 1980, when he was 29 years old. After retiring, he became a personal coach for another famous Italian skier, Alberto Tomba, from 1989 to 1996. He also worked as a technical director for the Italian men's national ski team.

Honors and Family

Gustav Thöni was chosen to carry the Italian flag at the opening ceremonies of the 1976 and 1980 Olympics. He also carried the flag at the closing ceremony of the 2006 Winter Games in Torino. In 1973 and 1974, ski journalists named him "Skieur d’Or" (Golden Skier). His cousin, Roland Thöni, was also a World Cup alpine ski racer. Roland won a bronze medal in slalom at the 1972 Olympics, where Gustav won silver.

Gustav Thöni's World Cup Achievements

Thöni in 1970

Thöni at age 18 in the slalom at the 1970 World Championships

Gustav Thöni won many titles and races during his career.

World Cup Season Titles

He won 8 World Cup titles in total:

• 4 overall titles
• 2 giant slalom titles
• 2 slalom titles

World Cup Race Victories

Gustav Thöni won 24 World Cup races:

• 11 Giant Slalom wins
• 8 Slalom wins
• 4 Combined wins
• 1 Parallel Slalom win

He also had 69 podium finishes (meaning he placed first, second, or third).

Season	Date	Location	Discipline
1970	11 Dec 1969	Val d'Isère, France	Giant slalom
	4 Jan 1970	Bad Hindelang, West Germany	Slalom
	29 Jan 1970	Madonna di Campiglio, Italy	Giant slalom
	30 Jan 1970		Giant slalom
1971	10 Jan 1971	Madonna di Campiglio, Italy	Slalom
	21 Feb 1971	Sugarloaf, ME, USA	Giant slalom
	25 Feb 1971	Heavenly Valley, CA, USA	Slalom
	27 Feb 1971		Giant slalom
1972	2 Mar 1972	Heavenly Valley, CA, USA	Giant slalom
1973	15 Jan 1973	Adelboden, Switzerland	Giant slalom
	4 Feb 1973	St. Anton, Austria	Slalom
	4 Mar 1973	Mont Ste. Anne, QC, Canada	Slalom
1974	20 Jan 1974	Adelboden, Switzerland	Giant slalom
	2 Mar 1974	Voss, Norway	Giant slalom
	10 Mar 1974	Vysoke Tatry, Czechoslovakia	Slalom
1975	12 Jan 1975	Wengen, Switzerland	Combined
	19 Jan 1975	Kitzbühel, Austria	Combined
	30 Jan 1975	Chamonix, France	Slalom
	1 Feb 1975	Megève, France	Combined
	15 Mar 1975	Sun Valley, ID, USA	Slalom
	23 Mar 1975	Val Gardena, Italy	Parallel
1976	5 Dec 1975	Val d'Isère, France	Giant slalom
	12 Jan 1976	Adelboden, Switzerland	Giant slalom
1977	16 Jan 1977	Wengen, Switzerland	Combined

Olympic and World Championship Medals

Gustav Thöni won medals at both the Olympic Games and the World Championships. From 1948 to 1980, the Winter Olympics also counted as the World Championships for alpine skiing.

Olympic Medals

World Championship Medals

See also

In Spanish: Gustav Thöni para niños

• Italian men gold medalist at the Olympics and World Championships
• Italy national alpine ski at the World championships
• Italian skiers most successful race winner