Andreas Schifferer
Encyclopedia
Andreas "Andi" Schifferer (born 3 August 1974) is a former Austrian alpine skier
who was known to be a downhill
specialist, but also competed in other disciplines.
, Salzburger Land
in Austria and skied his first races at the age of three. After his high school period he joined the Skigymnasium school in Stams
and was invited to join the Austrian national team, which dominated the World Cups
in 1995.
, but mainly participated in the European Cup and won two downhills in La Thuile
and Saalbach-Hinterglemm
. In the other races and disciplines he also qualified among the best skiers, which brought him the Overall European Cup win. He won his first World Cup points the next season, when finishing in 25th position in Adelboden
. In the same season, in Bormio
he reached his first podium position when he finished in second position at the downhill.
In 1997 at the World Championships in Sestriere
he finished in third position at the giant slalom, securing him the bronze medal. He just missed out on a second medal when he finished in fifth position at the downhill. One year later Schifferer had a good season when he won four World Cup meetings in downhill, which resulted in the downhill World Cup win. Due to his good performances during the season on other disciplines as well he finished in second position for the overall World Cup. Only Hermann Maier
collected more points. He made his Olympic debut at the 1998 Winter Olympics
in Nagano, finishing 7th at the downhill and 19th at the Super G. Also in the 1998-99 season Schifferer achieved good results in downhill competitions. He won for instance two downhill races in two days in Kvitfjell
, Norway and ended in second position in the World Cup standing at the end of the year. In the overall rankings he could not repeat his former results and finished in sixth position.
He reached his biggest achievement of his career at the 2002 Winter Olympics
in Salt Lake City. At the Super-G discipline he finished in third position behind Kjetil André Aamodt
and Stephan Eberharter
to win the bronze medal. Schifferer did not win any World Cup meetings since 18 December 1999, but still managed to finish in many podium places instead. In Park City
in 2003 he came very close to his next World Cup victory, but only finished in second position, just behind Bode Miller
.
Since 2004 Schifferer was no longer able to achieve top rankings in World Cup races, but mainly finished in the middle of the bunch instead. In the 2005-06 season his best result was a 9th position in Val Gardena. During his career he won a total of eight World Cup meetings, seven in downhill and one on the Super G.
On 13 December 2006 Schifferer announced his retirement from the sport.
Alpine skiing
Alpine skiing is the sport of sliding down snow-covered hills on skis with fixed-heel bindings. Alpine skiing can be contrasted with skiing using free-heel bindings: Ski mountaineering and nordic skiing – such as cross-country; ski jumping; and Telemark. In competitive alpine skiing races four...
who was known to be a downhill
Downhill
Downhill is an alpine skiing discipline. The rules for the Downhill were originally developed by Sir Arnold Lunn for the 1921 British National Ski Championships....
specialist, but also competed in other disciplines.
Early life
Schifferer was born in RadstadtRadstadt
Radstadt is a historic town in the district of St. Johann im Pongau in the Austrian state of Salzburg. It is located at the confluence of the Taurach stream and the Enns river, at the foot of Roßbrand mountain, part of the Salzburg Slate Alps.-History:...
, Salzburger Land
Salzburg (state)
Salzburg is a state or Land of Austria with an area of 7,156 km2, located adjacent to the German border. It is also known as Salzburgerland, to distinguish it from its capital city, also named Salzburg...
in Austria and skied his first races at the age of three. After his high school period he joined the Skigymnasium school in Stams
Stams
Stams is a municipality in the Imst district and is located 18.50 km east of Imst, 7 km west of Telfs and 46 km west of Innsbruck on the southern shore of the Inn River...
and was invited to join the Austrian national team, which dominated the World Cups
Alpine skiing World Cup
The FIS Alpine Ski World Cup is the top international circuit of alpine skiing competitions, launched in 1966 by a group of ski racing friends and experts which included French journalist Serge Lang and the alpine ski team directors from France and the USA...
in 1995.
Career
In his first season, 1994/1995 he made his World Cup debut in Val d'IsèreVal d'Isère
Val d'Isère is a commune of the Tarentaise Valley, in the Savoie department in south-eastern France. It lies from the border with Italy. It is on the border of the Vanoise National Park created in 1963. The Face de Bellevarde was the scene of the men's downhill race as part of the 1992 Winter...
, but mainly participated in the European Cup and won two downhills in La Thuile
La Thuile
La Thuile is a town and comune in the Aosta Valley of northwest Italy.-Geography:La Thuile is situated in the Alps at the extreme north-west of the country, close to the French alpine town of La Rosière...
and Saalbach-Hinterglemm
Saalbach-Hinterglemm
Saalbach-Hinterglemm is a municipality in the district of Zell am See , in the Austrian state of Salzburg. It is well-known for its skiing and other winter sports...
. In the other races and disciplines he also qualified among the best skiers, which brought him the Overall European Cup win. He won his first World Cup points the next season, when finishing in 25th position in Adelboden
Adelboden
Adelboden is a municipality in the Frutigen-Niedersimmental administrative district in the Bernese Oberland in Switzerland.-Geography:Adelboden lies in the west of the Berner Oberland, at the end of the valley of the Engstlige river, which flows in Frutigen into the Kander river.Adelboden is a...
. In the same season, in Bormio
Bormio
Bormio is a town and comune located in the province of Sondrio, Lombardy region of the Alps in northern Italy. It has a population of 4,200...
he reached his first podium position when he finished in second position at the downhill.
In 1997 at the World Championships in Sestriere
Sestriere
Sestriere is an alpine village in Italy, a comune of the Province of Turin. It is from the French border. Its name derives from Latin: ad petram sistrariam, that is at sixty Roman miles from Turin....
he finished in third position at the giant slalom, securing him the bronze medal. He just missed out on a second medal when he finished in fifth position at the downhill. One year later Schifferer had a good season when he won four World Cup meetings in downhill, which resulted in the downhill World Cup win. Due to his good performances during the season on other disciplines as well he finished in second position for the overall World Cup. Only Hermann Maier
Hermann Maier
Hermann Maier is an Austrian former alpine ski racer. Maier ranks among the finest alpine ski racers in history, having won four overall World Cup titles , two Olympic gold medals , and three World Championship titles...
collected more points. He made his Olympic debut at the 1998 Winter Olympics
1998 Winter Olympics
The 1998 Winter Olympics, officially the XVIII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 7 to 22 February 1998 in Nagano, Japan. Seventy-two nations and 2,176 participans contested in seven sports and 72 events at 15 venues. The games saw the introduction of Women's ice...
in Nagano, finishing 7th at the downhill and 19th at the Super G. Also in the 1998-99 season Schifferer achieved good results in downhill competitions. He won for instance two downhill races in two days in Kvitfjell
Kvitfjell
Kvitfjell is a ski resort in the municipality of Ringebu, Norway. Kvitfjell is one of the most modern resorts in the world, with 85% of the alpine skiing pistes covered in artificial snow. Based near the river Gudbrandsdalslågen, the resort offers 23 pistes: 5 green , 9 blue , 6 red , and 3 black...
, Norway and ended in second position in the World Cup standing at the end of the year. In the overall rankings he could not repeat his former results and finished in sixth position.
He reached his biggest achievement of his career at the 2002 Winter Olympics
2002 Winter Olympics
The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event that was celebrated in February 2002 in and around Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. Approximately 2,400 athletes from 77 nations participated in 78 events in fifteen disciplines, held throughout...
in Salt Lake City. At the Super-G discipline he finished in third position behind Kjetil André Aamodt
Kjetil André Aamodt
Kjetil André Aamodt is a Norwegian former alpine ski racer, and is the most decorated in history....
and Stephan Eberharter
Stephan Eberharter
Stephan Eberharter is a former alpine ski racer, the winner of the overall World Cup title in 2002 and 2003. He was the nearest rival of compatriot Hermann Maier in the late 1990s and early 2000s...
to win the bronze medal. Schifferer did not win any World Cup meetings since 18 December 1999, but still managed to finish in many podium places instead. In Park City
Park City, Utah
Park City is a town in Summit and Wasatch counties in the U.S. state of Utah. It is considered to be part of the Wasatch Back. The city is southeast of downtown Salt Lake City and from Salt Lake City's east edge of Sugar House along Interstate 80. The population was 7,558 at the 2010 census...
in 2003 he came very close to his next World Cup victory, but only finished in second position, just behind Bode Miller
Bode Miller
Samuel Bode Miller is an American alpine ski racer. He is an Olympic and World Championship gold medalist, a two-time overall World Cup champion in 2005 and 2008, and is generally considered the greatest American alpine skier of all time...
.
Since 2004 Schifferer was no longer able to achieve top rankings in World Cup races, but mainly finished in the middle of the bunch instead. In the 2005-06 season his best result was a 9th position in Val Gardena. During his career he won a total of eight World Cup meetings, seven in downhill and one on the Super G.
On 13 December 2006 Schifferer announced his retirement from the sport.
Statistics
| downhill | giant slalom | super g | combined | parallel | total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| World Cup victories | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| World Cup podiums | 12 | 7 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 28 |
| World Cup top tens | 43 | 30 | 31 | 4 | 1 | 109 |
| World Cup victories | ||
|---|---|---|
| date | venue | discipline |
| 13 March 1997 |  Vail |
Super G |
| 5 December 1997 | Beaver Creek Beaver Creek - Places :United States*Beaver Creek, Colorado*Beaver Creek, Maryland*Beaver Creek, Minnesota*Beaver Creek, Montana*Beaver Creek Township, Michigan*Beaver Creek Township, MinnesotaCanada*Beaver Creek, Yukon, a town in the western Yukon... |
Downhill |
| 30 December 1997 |  BormioBormio Bormio is a town and comune located in the province of Sondrio, Lombardy region of the Alps in northern Italy. It has a population of 4,200... |
Downhill |
| 17 January 1998 |  WengenWengen Wengen may refer to:*Wengen, a village and winter resort in Switzerland*La Val, a commune in South Tyrol, Italy with the German name "Wengen"*in Germany:**Wengen , a village in the municipality of Nennslingen in Mittelfranken... |
Downhill |
| 31 January 1998 |  Garmisch-PartenkirchenGarmisch-Partenkirchen Garmisch-Partenkirchen is a mountain resort town in Bavaria, southern Germany. It is the administrative centre of the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, in the Oberbayern region, and the district is on the border with Austria... |
Downhill |
| 5 March 1999 |  KvitfjellKvitfjell Kvitfjell is a ski resort in the municipality of Ringebu, Norway. Kvitfjell is one of the most modern resorts in the world, with 85% of the alpine skiing pistes covered in artificial snow. Based near the river Gudbrandsdalslågen, the resort offers 23 pistes: 5 green , 9 blue , 6 red , and 3 black... |
Downhill |
| 6 March 1999 | Kvitfjell Kvitfjell Kvitfjell is a ski resort in the municipality of Ringebu, Norway. Kvitfjell is one of the most modern resorts in the world, with 85% of the alpine skiing pistes covered in artificial snow. Based near the river Gudbrandsdalslågen, the resort offers 23 pistes: 5 green , 9 blue , 6 red , and 3 black... |
Downhill |
| 18 December 1999 | Val Gardena |
Downhill |
| First World Cup start |  1994 Val d'IsèreVal d'Isère Val d'Isère is a commune of the Tarentaise Valley, in the Savoie department in south-eastern France. It lies from the border with Italy. It is on the border of the Vanoise National Park created in 1963. The Face de Bellevarde was the scene of the men's downhill race as part of the 1992 Winter... |
| First World Cup points | 1995 Adelboden Adelboden Adelboden is a municipality in the Frutigen-Niedersimmental administrative district in the Bernese Oberland in Switzerland.-Geography:Adelboden lies in the west of the Berner Oberland, at the end of the valley of the Engstlige river, which flows in Frutigen into the Kander river.Adelboden is a... |
| First World Cup podium | 1995 Bormio Bormio Bormio is a town and comune located in the province of Sondrio, Lombardy region of the Alps in northern Italy. It has a population of 4,200... |
- Statistics updated until: 26 November 2006