Downhill courses are the monsters of alpine skiing: 9,000-foot-long beasts with steep pitches that combine to build tremendous speed. So she really had no clue who I was.. We discuss out recent trip to Innsbruck, Austria along with Patricia Frommer (Frommers.com, Frommer Guides) who adds her perspective. Since the previous season the charismatic newcomer has won virtually every race.The pressure from the media and the public and the hopes of an entire nation are off the scales. And suddenly, there were 60,000 people in the stadium and the whole mountain started to shake, Bernhard Russi explains. He and Elisabeth dissected the story to determine how they could tell Klammers story and keep the attention of an audience 45 years after his famous ride down Patscherkofel. But Franz Klammer's career took an exceptional turn when he won in front of a huge crowd during the Innsbruck Games on 5 February 1976. He could sense it himself. One of his early moves was to position Fischer as an elite ski product, investing in racing and having the good fortune in 1964 of Austrian Egon Zimmermann winning downhill gold on Patscherkofel on Fischer skis, vaulting the small company into the spotlight. In 1990, Klammer won a round of the prestigious European Touring Car Championship. For nearly a half-century, the story of the country boy finding gold has begged for the silver screen. Salmina was at Kitzbhel in 2003 the day Rahlves won. Although he dominated the downhill event in World Cup competition, the overall title remained elusive, because the technical specialists had two events in which to earn points (slalom and giant slalom), whereas a speed specialist had only one. What the hell. For some, that means weekends with the family driving to a ski resort. Klammer seemed doomed. Ever since I can remember, I have been on skis. He remembered that day in 1976 as a six-year-old boy, crowded together with his kindergarten classmates watching on a miniature television at school. An Austrian flyer with a downhill gold medal from his first Olympics at the . Today, more than 45 years later, its legend still lives on, an enduring story of what many consider to be the greatest ski race of all time. I was kicking in her belly because my mother was so excited the whole time.. Your email address will not be published. Some of ski racings greatest characters have attracted even more attention from the media and the crowds, thanks to nicknames invented by fans, friends or reporters. He is considered the best-ever Downhill skier who dominated the competitions in the seventies and the eighties. Unable to make the four-member Austrian downhill team for the 1980 Olympics, Klammer could not defend his Olympic title at the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid. It would also usher in a new era of ski racing as a global sport while hundreds of millions of viewers watched his Klammer Style run to Olympic gold. She finished second in downhill and giant slalom behind the unknown Swiss teenager Marie-Therese Nadig, who had never reached any major podium before the 1972 Olympics. Thats what I liked.. Lineage: Original Scotch VHS 3Hr (1980) SP- Panasonic NVHS-960 SVHS (Gold edition - Mint) - SVIDEO lead - Canopus ADVC300 - Firewire - PC /w/ Sony Vegas with Neatvideo plugin - TMPGENC (Deint - 50fps mp4 3000bitrate) Youtube. A dozen years later, Fischer had a strong racing product. Starting in 15th position, Klammer was the last of the top seeds and knew that Russi had set a blistering pace to lead by over a half-second. He met fans who vividly re-lived their own experiences of Feb. 5, 1976. Photo caption:Ortlieb takes flight over the mens downhill course on his way to winning gold at Albertville. ago I remember being a kid seeing this live and thinking how close to death he pushed himself. He was always going for the victory. Kids act as sportscasters while watching Franz Klammer's performance at the Olympic Winter Games Insbruck 1976. . The man to beat was the Swiss competitor Bernhard Russi, title-holder after his victory at the Sapporo Games in 1972 and who intended to retain his sceptre. So his knowledge bank on Klammer comes from the legend and from the longstanding friendship hes had with him. A great career only becomes exceptional with the ultimate title an Olympic gold medal. There was plenty of passion and experience with Salmina, whose Mount St. Elias and Streif were captivating works. Nobody went there to see if it was possible or not. He was paired with Frank Gifford to call one of the Winter Olympics' most famous ski races for ABC - Austrian great Franz Klammer's electric downhill run to capture gold in 1976. Innsbruck 1976 | Olympic Winter games. The third racer on the course, he finished 0.33 seconds behind Franz Klammer of Austria, who started fifteenth, the last of [4], Immediately after his retirement from alpine competition, Klammer took up motor racing, and was soon involved in touring car racing, driving Mercedes-Benz saloons all over Europe and racing professionally as far away as Australia. He slid his Fischer C4s back and forth, stretching his legs. Mayer, a Hahnenkamm champion who won Olympic downhill gold at Rosa Khutor in 2014 and doubled up with super-G gold at PyeongChang, grew up literally on the other side of the mountain from Klammers home. But they were not attractive. He was the gold medalist at the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, winning the downhill at Patscherkofel by a margin of 0.33 seconds with a time of 1:45.73. It includes the original US broadcast commentary from ABC. Alberto Tomba won gold in slalom and GS at Calgary, then cheered from the side of the rink as Katarina Witt of East Germany claimed her second Olympic figure-skating title. It will premiere Oct. 26 in Villach, Austria, near Klammers childhood home of Mooswald. Apparently they also threw quite a party at Arnies suite at the Hyatt Hotel to celebrate the wins. Two or three times we tried to bring a good story. Berlin-based Picturetree International is managing global distribution. He was a troubled youth who began competitive skiing on nearby Mount . We met in Tunisia, in Africa, on the beach, recalled Klammer. So that was the important thing., They were married in 1979. The preceding ski season had been terrific, too, as big crowds closely followed Italys unpredictable phenomenon Alberto Tomba, who was dominating the World Cup that season with six victories and a second place standing in the technical events. So I decided to take even more risks.. The final event was a parallel slalom and Klammer lost in the first round. His final World Cup race was in March 1985 at Aspen, Colorado. He followed him through the day soaking in the cultural experience. Four years later, they met for dinner and a private ski lesson. Two days after that frightening accident, he was facing the press to confirm his intention to race the following day in Super G. It was quite a flightfor sure not as comfortable as our journey over here with Lufthansa, he said with a grin. Hes one of the very few persons who seemed to do everything right. Then came the biggest blow. Ortlieb is a well-known name in Alsace; I think I know some of his relatives, explained Lang, who was also born in Alsace in 1920. To shoot the film, producers literally took over Patscherkofel, taking the revered race course back in time. And Schmied and Schmidt hit it out of the park. I hope it lasts forever., Storyline in hand, casting the right actors became the next challenge. But it lacked an antagonist someone to create tension. Franz Klammer 1976 Innsbruck - The Greatest Downhill Run of All Time - FULL UNEDITED!! Suddenly there were 60,000 people in the stadium and the whole mountain began to shake. Klammer did not have classic ski technique, he came out of the gate fearlessly, right on the edge. The project really came to us with a big burden, said Schmied, echoing Pochlatkos concerns. It was just the idea of making something about Franz Klammer., But Pochlatko also saw the challenge. [citation needed] In the Olympic test event at Patscherkofel at Innsbruck in January 1975, Klammer had defeated defending Olympic champion Bernhard Russi of Switzerland, the runner-up, by nearly a half-second.[2]. Jean-Claude Killy. And the two met that night at The Londoner forging both a friendship and a partnership in telling the story of ski racing that has spanned nearly two decades. They also needed to take what is now an intermediate recreational ski run and transform in into the rough and tumble 1976 downhill. One of the most important things I got out of sport were friendships, said Klammer. Klammer's gold-medal-winning downhill run at the 1976 Innsbruck Olympics was anything but dull. He was able to hold his line on a difficult course, while established speed specialists struggled. He also holds the record for the most victories (four) on the full course at Kitzbhel. But, with Eva, it was immediate. If there . Annemarie Moser-Proell dominated her time as no other skier before and after her. Really the whole mountain was shaking when Franz came down, he recalls. Many still call it the greatest downhill of all time. For ONLY $12 youll receive six issues of, 3. I went all the way up to the top. During the call, he also invited Maier to visit him next spring in Los Angeles. The next one minute, 45.73 seconds would change Franz Klammers life forever. And I personally think there is somewhere that power from spectators they can pull him down. And Klammer was winning big on its C4 skis. His company BioramaSports.com produces the Ski World Cup Guide and provides TV stations with reports from the World Cup circuit. I was so convinced that I can do it. They were excited and I knew I won it. Each competitor who followed failed to best his time, until there was only one skier left who was capable of beating him: Franz Klammer. Its very special that Franz grew up in Carinthia, just 10 minutes from my house., Every year, Mayer joins legions of followers to the local Tour de Franz cycling event. But it was also complex. Originals 01:56. And hes still a big hero today., Mayer echoed the pride of his Austrian state. Required fields are marked *. Three years ago, Kresse tried one more time. He was kind of a tough, tough guy.. On race day, she stayed laser-focused as she made her way down the course, despite strong gusts of wind that disturbed some of her main rivals, including Nadig. Alpine Skiing. At the World Championships from 1954 through 1980, the combined was a "paper race" using the results of the three events (DH, GS, SL). But young Franz loved the snow, skiing to school in the winter and climbing up hills on his own to come racing back down. Bernhard Russi stared up at the massive 1976 Olympic downhill course at Innsbruck, Austria, clinging to the fastest time of the day and waiting for one final top racer: Austrian star Franz Klammer . Just the idea of making a film about Franz Klammer is not very easy from a filmmakers perspective, he said. I think it put him at a higher level, too, with his own confidence. Klammer's 1:45.73 was more than thirty-two seconds faster. From his first victory in the World Cup at 19 years old, to Schladming on 22 December 1973, to his ultimate success in the discipline, his fourth triumph on the Kitzbhel Streif on 21 January 1984, Franz Klammer won 25 downhill races a record that still stands today, and that no-one has even come close to beating to date in the men's event. Sep 26, 2013 - This is nearly the entire Franz Klammer Gold Medal Run from the Innsbruck Winter Olympics of 1976. After that, he was known as The Herminator. While much can be said about fame, few superstar ski racers started their careers just to seek glory. It was unreal to be a part of that it was an honor, said Rahlves, who spent a week last February doing ski scenes outside Innsbruck. Rahlves, too, is in a fascinating place in Austrian ski history. Or request a free print copy of the magazine mailed to your home. He won for the nation, for every Austrian skier. Game 6 of the 1975 World Series Reds v. Red Sox 4. I think he is skiing right now at Sun Valley and I know his ski instructor. 14/11/2009 LICENCE: Creative Commons. The Klammer story was, well, pretty perfect. That December, he kicked off the 1973-74 World Championship year with the first of his 25 World Cup downhill wins claiming a victory in Schladming. The other challenge faced by Rahlves was the need to intentionally ski out of control. After his victories, Alberto told me hed be pleased to watch East Germanys attractive superstar Katarina Witt competing at the ice arena in Calgary. Rahlves got his own revenge, of sorts, just two months later when he opened the World Championships in St. Anton with a super-G victory ahead of Austrias Stephan Eberharter and Maier a day that stopped the world in the hearts of Austrian ski racing fans. For Kaiser Franz, this moment of triumph happened on the 3,020m of the Patscherkofel in Innsbruck on Thursday 5 February 1976. In February, he caught attention with a silver in downhill at the World Championships in St. Moritz albeit over a second behind his teammate David Zwilling. Franz Klammer is an Austrian former Alpine ski racer known for dominating the Downhill skiing discipline. When I told my mother that Im doing this film, she said all these memories came up. In many ways, Klammer was an unlikely champion. His greatest moment is certainly still his Olympic win in Innsbruck; however, his entire career remains a great source of inspiration for all the speed skiers that have followed. The two became friends. Several times he sailed through the air with arms flailing and skis askew, but he always. He could really win in this kind of Klammer style. We would watch a lot of film and I had to put it in my head that I had to ski out of control and make these little mistakes everywhere., Before every ski scene, as Rahlves was examining the run in his mind, the director would scream at him, Daron, no, no, no, you got to ski Klammer style, Klammer style out of control.. Two-time world champion and former alpine ski racer who dominated the four consecutive seasons of the World Cup in the downhill event, Standing aloof as the extraordinary defining rider in an alpine ski Franz Klammer protrudes among those alpine ski heroes. [citation needed]. He is not only legendary as a skier, hes just a very great person.. At his peak (Wengen 1976 to Wengen 1977), Klammer won ten consecutive downhills, including the pressure-laden win at the 1976 Olympics. The next day, Katarina showed up on time with her gear, which Albertos personal bodyguard carried up to the hill. Klammer overwhelmingly dominated the downhill event for four consecutive World Cup seasons (1975-78). 1 mo. The 1976 Olympic downhill was arguably the most anticipated Winter Olympic event in history a matchup with the veteran, defending gold medalist Bernhard Russi of Switzerland, and the upstart young Austrian farm boy Franz Klammer. Maybe nobody knows them, but I think everybody will know them after the movie is out because theyre so good., Klammer and Eva spent significant time with the screenwriters and the actors, especially Waldner. Patrick Ortlieb admitted afterwards that he had a French passport lying around somewhere at home, yet he was happy to race for Austria. I always thought, I will never be able to find a woman who Im going to love, said Klammer, pausing to collect his thoughts. Franz Klammer (right) with Bernhard Russi after the men's downhill in 1976. [1] He had a tough struggle to make the Austrian ski team, traditionally dominated by the states of Tyrol and Salzburg. Thats a fun story. He would also have to live with personal challenges. Franz Klammer, a former champion alpine ski racer, has a net worth of $45 million. I mean, I had to come off some of the rollers, the knolls, on the tails, flying up in the air, arms out you know, just out of control, going through the pine boughs, cutting back straight to a gate, towards a fence and then redirect that. We were a team."eattie served as a commentator for ABC Sports coverage of alpine skiing at the Winter Olympics from 1976 to 1988. ski team historian Tom Kelly last . The greatest downhill run of ALL Time! He is out, he cant make it shouted triple Olympic champion Toni Sailer, alpine director of the Austrian team, after seeing Franz fly high into the air off the Ochsenschlag jump in the upper part of the run. So I really wanted to give the audience a real feel for the people in the story.. Enjoy!! Instead, it focuses on the microcosm of his relationship with Eva as they are spirited away from the finish in an ambulance before she drives him from Tyrol back to Carinthia the next day.