Didier Cuche
Encyclopedia
Didier Cuche (born August 16, 1974, in Le Pâquier, Neuchâtel
Le Pâquier, Neuchâtel
Le Pâquier is a municipality in the district of Val-de-Ruz in the canton of Neuchâtel in Switzerland.The municipalities of Boudevilliers, Cernier, Chézard-Saint-Martin, Coffrane, Dombresson, Engollon, Fenin-Vilars-Saules, Fontainemelon, Fontaines, Les Geneveys-sur-Coffrane, Les Hauts-Geneveys,...

) is a Swiss
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

 alpine ski racer
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...

. He primarily competes in the speed disciplines of downhill and Super-G
Super Giant Slalom skiing
The Super Giant Slalom is an Alpine skiing discipline. It is usually referred to as Super G and is a "speed" event, along with the faster Downhill event; the Giant Slalom and Slalom events are known as the "technical" disciplines.-History:...

, along with the technical discipline of giant slalom. He is the reigning World Cup downhill and Super-G champion for the 2011
2011 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 45th FIS Alpine Ski World Cup season began on 23 October 2010, in Sölden, Austria, and concluded on 20 March 2011, at the World Cup finals in Lenzerheide, Switzerland.Being an odd-numbered year, the biennial World Championships took place in February...

 season and has won three previous downhill titles in 2010
2010 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 44th World Cup season began on October 24, 2009, in Sölden, Austria, and concluded on March 14, 2010, at the World Cup finals in Garmisch, Germany....

, 2008
2008 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 42nd World Cup season began in October 2007 in Sölden, Austria and concluded on March 15, 2008, at the World Cup Finals in Bormio, Italy....

 and 2007
2007 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 41st World Cup season was scheduled to begin on October 28, 2006, but cancellation of the opening races in Sölden delayed the season's start by two weeks. A very poor snowpack in the Alps, along with stormy weather in January, caused numerous races to be moved and rescheduled throughout the...

, along with a giant slalom title in 2009
2009 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 43rd World Cup season began in late October 2008 in Sölden, Austria, and concluded in mid-March 2009, at the World Cup finals in Åre, Sweden.Aksel Lund Svindal of Norway won the overall title by two points over Benjamin Raich of Austria. Svindal returned from a season-ending injury in December...

. Through March 2011, Cuche has 17 World Cup race victories, along with 61 podiums (top three) and 171 top ten finishes. He is also an Olympic silver medalist and has won a total of four World Championships medals (a gold, two silvers, and a bronze).

Career highlights

At the 1998 Winter Olympics
Alpine skiing at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Alpine skiing at the 1998 Winter Olympics consisted of ten events held near Nagano, Japan. The speed events were held at Hakuba and the technical events at Shiga Kogen. There were a number of postponements due to weather; the races were run from February 10-21, 1998.-Downhill:The event was held...

 in Nagano, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, Cuche was the silver medalist in the Super-G
Super Giant Slalom skiing
The Super Giant Slalom is an Alpine skiing discipline. It is usually referred to as Super G and is a "speed" event, along with the faster Downhill event; the Giant Slalom and Slalom events are known as the "technical" disciplines.-History:...

, where he had exactly the same time as Hans Knauss resulting in a rare sharing of the medal (no bronze medal was awarded).

Cuche switched from Atomic
Atomic Skis
Atomic is an Austrian company which manufactures and sells skiing equipment .-Background:...

 to Head
Head (company)
Head N.V. is a sports equipment and clothing company, known mainly for their alpine skis and tennis racquets. Founded as a ski company in Baltimore, Maryland, the company is currently headquartered in Amsterdam, Netherlands, and Kennelbach, Austria...

 skis following the 2006
2006 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 40th World Cup season began in October 2005 and concluded at the World Cup finals in Åre, Sweden, in March 2006. The schedule included a nearly month-long break in February for the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino, Italy....

 season, joining 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...

 and 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...

.

During the 2007 season, Cuche was in top form, winning the downhill season title with a victory and four second place finishes. In the 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...

 downhill on December 28, 2006, he finished second, 0.01 seconds behind winner Michael Walchhofer
Michael Walchhofer
Michael Walchhofer is a former Austrian alpine ski racer. He started his career in slalom, but then moved over to the speed events. During his career he won the downhill world cup three times, one silver medal at Olympics Games, and one gold, two silver and one bronze medal at World Ski...

, the smallest measurable amount in ski racing.

Cuche repeated as the World Cup downhill season champion in 2008 with 584 points, five ahead of overall champion 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...

. Cuche finished third overall and nearly won the Super-G season title, finishing a single point behind champion Hannes Reichelt
Hannes Reichelt
Hannes Reichelt is an Austrian alpine skier, competing in Super-G, Downhill, Giant Slalom, and Alpine Combined races....

.

At the 2009 World Championships in Val d'Isère
Val 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...

, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

, Cuche won the Super-G
FIS Alpine World Ski Championships 2009 - Men's Super-G
Complete results for Men's Super-G competition at the 2009 World Championships. The first men's race of the championships, the race was run on February 4.-References:* - official results* - Worlds: Cuche is super G champion - 04-Feb-2009...

 and was the silver medalist in the downhill
FIS Alpine World Ski Championships 2009 - Men's downhill
Complete results for Men's Downhill competition at the 2009 World Championships. It was run on February 7, the fourth race of the championships.-References:* - official results* - Worlds: Canadian Kucera claims downhill - 07-Feb-2009...

.

A week after winning the Super-G and downhill at Kitzbühel in 2010
2010 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 44th World Cup season began on October 24, 2009, in Sölden, Austria, and concluded on March 14, 2010, at the World Cup finals in Garmisch, Germany....

, Cuche broke his right thumb in the giant slalom at Kranjska Gora
Kranjska Gora
Kranjska Gora is a town and a municipality on the Sava Dolinka River in the Upper Carniola region of northwest Slovenia, close to the Austrian and Italian borders.Kranjska Gora is best known as a winter sports town, being situated in the Julian Alps...

, Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...

 on January 29, two weeks before the 2010 Winter Olympics
Alpine skiing at the 2010 Winter Olympics
Alpine skiing at the 2010 Winter Olympics was held at Whistler Creekside in Whistler, British Columbia, Canada. The ten events were scheduled for February 13–27, 2010; weather delayed the first event, the men's downhill, two days until Monday, February 15....

. The injury put Cuche's Olympic participation in doubt, and he was immediately flown to Switzerland. After successful thumb surgery, he was cleared to compete in the Olympics in Canada.
Cuche had a disappointing Olympics and did not medal, however he regained the title of World Cup downhill champion for the 2010 season at the first post-Olympic race. Cuche won the downhill on the challenging Olympiabakken course at 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
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

, on March 6 for his fifth World Cup victory of the season. Until 2010, Cuche had never won more than two World Cup events in a single season.

On January 22, 2011
2011 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 45th FIS Alpine Ski World Cup season began on 23 October 2010, in Sölden, Austria, and concluded on 20 March 2011, at the World Cup finals in Lenzerheide, Switzerland.Being an odd-numbered year, the biennial World Championships took place in February...

, Cuche became the oldest race winner in the history of the World Cup, winning the Hahnenkamm
Hahnenkamm, Kitzbühel
The Hahnenkamm is a mountain in Austria, directly south of Kitzbühel, in the Kitzbühel Alps. The elevation of its summit is above sea level.The Hahnenkamm is part of the ski resort of Kitzbühel, and hosts the annual World Cup alpine ski races, the Hahnenkammrennen...

 downhill in Kitzbühel
Kitzbühel
-Demographic evolution:-Personalities:*Karl Wilhelm von Dalla Torre , entomologist and botanist*Alfons Walde , expressionist painter and architect*Peter Aufschnaiter , mountaineer and geographer...

 at the age of . It was also his fourth downhill victory in Kitzbühel, which ties him with Franz Klammer
Franz Klammer
Franz Klammer is a former champion alpine ski racer. Klammer overwhelmingly dominated the downhill event for four consecutive World Cup seasons . He was the gold medalist at the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, winning the downhill at Patscherkofel in dramatic fashion...

 for the record on the Hahnenkamm, which is generally considered the most difficult and dangerous of all downhill courses. He extended his age record a week later, with another downhill win in Chamonix
Chamonix
Chamonix-Mont-Blanc or, more commonly, Chamonix is a commune in the Haute-Savoie département in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. It was the site of the 1924 Winter Olympics, the first Winter Olympics...

 at the age of .

At the 2011 World Championships in February, he won the silver medal in the downhill
FIS Alpine World Ski Championships 2011 – Men's downhill
The Men's Downhill competition at the 2011 World Championships was the fourth race of the championships, run under spring-like conditions on Saturday, February 12th. At the start of the race at 11:00 am CET, the temperature was 3 C at the starting gate and 9 C at the finish area...

. In March he won the downhill champion title for the 2011 season. This marked the fourth time he captured the title (2011, 2010, 2008, 2007), a record only surpassed by Franz Klammer
Franz Klammer
Franz Klammer is a former champion alpine ski racer. Klammer overwhelmingly dominated the downhill event for four consecutive World Cup seasons . He was the gold medalist at the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, winning the downhill at Patscherkofel in dramatic fashion...

 who won the title five times. He ended the 2010–11 FIS World Cup season in first place ranking in Downhill and Super-G, finishing second in the Overall rankings to Ivica Kostelic
Ivica Kostelic
Ivica Kostelić is an alpine ski racer from Zagreb, Croatia. He won the world championship in slalom in 2003 and three Olympic silver medals in slalom and combined , along with the overall World Cup title in 2011 and 18 World Cup races during his career...

.

Season titles

6 season titles: 4 downhill, 1 Super-G
Super Giant Slalom skiing
The Super Giant Slalom is an Alpine skiing discipline. It is usually referred to as Super G and is a "speed" event, along with the faster Downhill event; the Giant Slalom and Slalom events are known as the "technical" disciplines.-History:...

, 1 giant slalom
Giant Slalom skiing
Giant slalom is an alpine skiing discipline. It involves skiing between sets of poles spaced at a greater distance to each other than in slalom but less than in super G....

Season Discipline
2007
2007 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 41st World Cup season was scheduled to begin on October 28, 2006, but cancellation of the opening races in Sölden delayed the season's start by two weeks. A very poor snowpack in the Alps, along with stormy weather in January, caused numerous races to be moved and rescheduled throughout the...

Downhill
2008
2008 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 42nd World Cup season began in October 2007 in Sölden, Austria and concluded on March 15, 2008, at the World Cup Finals in Bormio, Italy....

Downhill
2009
2009 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 43rd World Cup season began in late October 2008 in Sölden, Austria, and concluded in mid-March 2009, at the World Cup finals in Åre, Sweden.Aksel Lund Svindal of Norway won the overall title by two points over Benjamin Raich of Austria. Svindal returned from a season-ending injury in December...

Giant Slalom
Giant Slalom skiing
Giant slalom is an alpine skiing discipline. It involves skiing between sets of poles spaced at a greater distance to each other than in slalom but less than in super G....

2010
2010 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 44th World Cup season began on October 24, 2009, in Sölden, Austria, and concluded on March 14, 2010, at the World Cup finals in Garmisch, Germany....

Downhill
2011
2011 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 45th FIS Alpine Ski World Cup season began on 23 October 2010, in Sölden, Austria, and concluded on 20 March 2011, at the World Cup finals in Lenzerheide, Switzerland.Being an odd-numbered year, the biennial World Championships took place in February...

Downhill
Super-G
Super Giant Slalom skiing
The Super Giant Slalom is an Alpine skiing discipline. It is usually referred to as Super G and is a "speed" event, along with the faster Downhill event; the Giant Slalom and Slalom events are known as the "technical" disciplines.-History:...


Race victories

18 race victories: (10 downhill, 5 super G
Super Giant Slalom skiing
The Super Giant Slalom is an Alpine skiing discipline. It is usually referred to as Super G and is a "speed" event, along with the faster Downhill event; the Giant Slalom and Slalom events are known as the "technical" disciplines.-History:...

, 3 giant slalom
Giant Slalom skiing
Giant slalom is an alpine skiing discipline. It involves skiing between sets of poles spaced at a greater distance to each other than in slalom but less than in super G....

)
Season Date Location Race
1998
1998 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 32nd World Cup season began in October 1997 in Tignes, France, and concluded in March 1998 at the World Cup Finals in Crans-Montana, Switzerland. The overall winners were Hermann Maier of Austria and Katja Seizinger of Germany....

23 Jan 1998   Kitzbühel
Hahnenkamm, Kitzbühel
The Hahnenkamm is a mountain in Austria, directly south of Kitzbühel, in the Kitzbühel Alps. The elevation of its summit is above sea level.The Hahnenkamm is part of the ski resort of Kitzbühel, and hosts the annual World Cup alpine ski races, the Hahnenkammrennen...

, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

 
Downhill
2002
2002 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 2002 Alpine Skiing World Cup began in October 2001 and ended in March 2002 at the World Cup finals held in Altenmarkt, Austria. The overall winners were Stephan Eberharter and Michaela Dorfmeister, both from Austria....

05 Jan 2002   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...

, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

 
Giant Slalom
Giant Slalom skiing
Giant slalom is an alpine skiing discipline. It involves skiing between sets of poles spaced at a greater distance to each other than in slalom but less than in super G....

07 Mar 2002   Altenmarkt
Altenmarkt im Pongau
Altenmarkt im Pongau is a small town in the Salzburg state of Austria. Altenmarkt is situated 65 km South East of Salzburg. The town occupies an area of approximately 48 km² and sits at 842 metres above sea level.The town is principally known for its winter tourism...

, Austria
Super-G
Super Giant Slalom skiing
The Super Giant Slalom is an Alpine skiing discipline. It is usually referred to as Super G and is a "speed" event, along with the faster Downhill event; the Giant Slalom and Slalom events are known as the "technical" disciplines.-History:...

2003
2003 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 37th World Cup season began in October 2002 on Sölden, Austria, and concluded in March 2003 at the World Cup finals in Lillehammer, Norway. The overall winners were Stephan Eberharter of Austria and Janica Kostelić of Croatia....

08 Dec 2002   Beaver Creek
Beaver Creek Resort
Beaver Creek Resort is a major United States ski resort near Avon, Colorado, run by Vail Resorts. The resort comprises three villages, the main Beaver Creek Village, Bachelor Gulch, and Arrowhead to the west...

, USA
Super-G
2004
2004 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 38th World Cup season began in October 2003 in Sölden, Austria, and concluded at the World Cup finals in Sestriere, Italy, in March 2004. Sestriere would host the alpine skiing events at the 2006 Winter Olympics....

30 Jan 2004   Garmisch
Garmisch Classic
Garmisch Classic is an alpine ski resort in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Bavaria, Germany. The resort is in the Bavarian Alps, and its maximum elevation is 6726 feet above sea level, with a vertical drop of 4429 feet...

, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 
Downhill
2007
2007 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 41st World Cup season was scheduled to begin on October 28, 2006, but cancellation of the opening races in Sölden delayed the season's start by two weeks. A very poor snowpack in the Alps, along with stormy weather in January, caused numerous races to be moved and rescheduled throughout the...

10 Mar 2007   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
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

 
Downhill
2008
2008 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 42nd World Cup season began in October 2007 in Sölden, Austria and concluded on March 15, 2008, at the World Cup Finals in Bormio, Italy....

14 Dec 2007   Val Gardena, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 
Super-G
19 Jan 2008   Kitzbühel, Austria Downhill
2009
2009 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 43rd World Cup season began in late October 2008 in Sölden, Austria, and concluded in mid-March 2009, at the World Cup finals in Åre, Sweden.Aksel Lund Svindal of Norway won the overall title by two points over Benjamin Raich of Austria. Svindal returned from a season-ending injury in December...

21 Feb 2009   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....

, Italy
Giant Slalom
2010
2010 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 44th World Cup season began on October 24, 2009, in Sölden, Austria, and concluded on March 14, 2010, at the World Cup finals in Garmisch, Germany....

25 Oct 2009   Sölden
Sölden
Sölden is a municipality in the Ötztal valley of Tyrol, Austria.-Geography:At c. 467 km² , it is the largest municipality in the country. The population of 3,449 is outnumbered by tourists, of which 15,000 can be accommodated...

, Austria
Giant Slalom
28 Nov 2009   Lake Louise
Lake Louise Mountain Resort
The Lake Louise Ski Area is a ski resort located in Banff National Park, near the village of Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada. It can be reached from Banff, from where it is a 35 to 45 minute drive west on Trans-Canada Highway, or Calgary, a 2-hour drive...

, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 
Downhill
22 Jan 2010   Kitzbühel, Austria Super-G
23 Jan 2010 Downhill
06 Mar 2010   Kvitfjell, Norway Downhill
2011
2011 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 45th FIS Alpine Ski World Cup season began on 23 October 2010, in Sölden, Austria, and concluded on 20 March 2011, at the World Cup finals in Lenzerheide, Switzerland.Being an odd-numbered year, the biennial World Championships took place in February...

22 Jan 2011   Kitzbühel, Austria Downhill
29 Jan 2011   Chamonix
Chamonix
Chamonix-Mont-Blanc or, more commonly, Chamonix is a commune in the Haute-Savoie département in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. It was the site of the 1924 Winter Olympics, the first Winter Olympics...

, France
Downhill
13 Mar 2011   Kvitfjell, Norway Super-G
2012
2012 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 46th FIS Alpine Ski World Cup season began on 22 October 2011, in Sölden, Austria, and will conclude on 18 March 2012, at the World Cup finals in Schladming, Austria.Two races will take place in Sochi, a venue for the 2014 Winter Olympics...

26 Nov 2011   Lake Louise, Canada Downhill

External links




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