Ingemar Stenmark Named Legend of the Year
His domination of alpine skiing remains unrivalled: he set records that stand to this day and shaped the history of the Ganslern slope like no other athlete. To mark the 50th anniversary of his first victory in Kitzbühel, Ingemar Stenmark has been named Hahnenkamm Races Legend of the Year.
Sport has never been shy of superlatives – but only a few lines about Ingemar Stenmark’s career are enough to realise that, in his case, they are entirely justified. He was the greatest ski racer of all time, and even today, decades after his career ended in March 1989, many of his records remain unbroken.
With 86 World Cup victories and 155 podium finishes, the Swede is the most successful alpine skier in World Cup history. Only Mikaela Shiffrin now leads him in one statistical category. For many years, Stenmark dominated the technical disciplines at will: between 1974 and 1989, he claimed an astonishing 46 giant slalom victories and 40 slalom wins. One of the most elegant skiers the sport has ever seen, he secured the overall World Cup title three times, alongside two Olympic gold medals and five world championship titles.
Stenmark also left a legacy in Kitzbühel that remains very much alive today. In 16 starts, he stood on the podium nine times and won five slaloms on the Ganslernhang – a record yet to be equalled, let alone broken. His first triumph in Kitzbühel came on 24 January 1976. The 50th anniversary of that victory is the ideal moment to honour the ski icon from the Swedish province of Västerbotten with the title of Hahnenkamm Races “Legend of the Year”.
This moment during the award ceremony on Saturday evening is also particularly special for Hahnenkamm Races Organising Committee Chairman Michael Huber: “Ingemar Stenmark was my sporting idol when I was growing up. He was a superstar who perfected ski racing with the equipment and piste preparation available at the time. His five victories on the Ganslern slope remain an unrivalled record.”
Another milestone in Stenmark’s career remains unbroken to this day: on 17 January 1982, he won a slalom by an extraordinary margin of 3.16 seconds – again on the Ganslernhang. Michael Huber is particularly fond of recalling another quite extraordinary chapter: “Ingemar Stenmark’s only start in a downhill race was in 1981, on the Streif. His performance was unforgettable and makes him a very special Hahnenkamm Races Legend of the Year.”
At the time, the Swede contested only the downhill to earn World Cup points for the combined. He tackled the steep sections upright, dropping into a tuck only on the gliding sections. He finished 34th, over ten seconds behind the winner – yet still placed second overall in the combined. Just one more example of a career that is truly unrivalled.
Photo © EXPA/Hans Groder, KSC/Mohacci
