Pirmin Zurbriggen facts for kids
| Alpine skier | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Zurbriggen in 2014
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| Disciplines | Downhill, super-G, giant slalom, slalom, combined | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 4 February 1963 Saas Almagell, Valais, Switzerland |
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| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Cup debut | 4 January 1981 (age 17) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Retired | 17 March 1990 (age 27) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Website | zurbriggen.ch | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Olympics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Teams | 2 (1984, 1988) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Medals | 2 (1 gold) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Championships | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Teams | 4 (1982, 1985, 1987, 1989) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Medals | 9 (4 gold) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Cup | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Seasons | 10 (1981–1990) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wins | 40 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Podiums | 83 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Overall titles | 4 (1984, 1987, 1988, 1990) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Discipline titles | 12 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Pirmin Zurbriggen (born 4 February 1963) is a famous former alpine ski racer from Switzerland. He is known as one of the most successful ski racers ever. He won the overall World Cup title four times. He also earned an Olympic gold medal in Downhill at the 1988 Winter Olympics. In addition, he won nine medals at the World Championships, including four gold medals.
Early Life and Career
Pirmin Zurbriggen was born in Saas-Almagell, a village in Valais, Switzerland. His father, Alois, was an innkeeper and used to compete in local ski races. However, his father stopped skiing after his brother was in a training accident.
Pirmin started his World Cup career in January 1981, just before his 18th birthday. He quickly became a top athlete. In January 1985, at age 21, he won a downhill race in Kitzbühel, Austria. This made him the first skier to win World Cup races in all five alpine skiing events. These events are Downhill, Super-G, Giant slalom, Slalom, and Combined. The Super-G event was quite new at the time, added in December 1982.
Amazing Achievements
Pirmin Zurbriggen retired from international skiing in 1990. He finished his career by winning his fourth World Cup overall title. At that time, only one other male skier, Gustav Thöni, had won four overall titles. Pirmin had a total of 40 World Cup victories during his nine years of competing. This places him among the "All-Time Greats" in alpine skiing. He also finished in the top ten 169 times, showing how consistently good he was.
He won a gold medal in the Downhill event at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Canada. He also won a bronze medal in the Giant Slalom at the same Olympics. At the World Championships, he won four gold medals, four silver medals, and one bronze medal.
Life After Skiing
After his successful skiing career, Pirmin Zurbriggen started a family. He married Monika Julen in 1989. Monika is the sister of Max Julen, who was Pirmin's good friend on the Swiss ski team. They have five children: Elia, Pirmin Jr., Maria, Alain, and Leonie. All of his children have also competed in ski racing. His older brother, Heidi Zurbriggen, also became a successful ski racer, winning three World Cup downhill races.
Today, Pirmin Zurbriggen runs two hotels. He manages the "Wellness Hotel Pirmin Zurbriggen" in Saas-Almagell with his parents. He also runs the "Apparthotel Zurbriggen" in Zermatt. He also worked with Authier Ski company to create his own line of skis after he retired.
Images for kids
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The Olympic rings, a symbol of the Olympic Games where Pirmin Zurbriggen won a gold medal.
See also
In Spanish: Pirmin Zurbriggen para niños
