They met later that year in Italy during an exhibitionand then again four years later at Les Menuires, the site of the slalom race for the 1992 Albertville Games. During the 1970s and early 1980s, Austrian downhill-skiing star Franz Klammer won 25 races on the World Cup circuit. Today, Franz Klammer is a paid ambassador for several ski resorts and corporations. Curling. He didnt grow up in the shadow of the towering Tyrolean Alps. Alpine Skiing Legend Franz Klammer Relives His 1976 Olympic Run | ISOS006. A Silver was not an option to the Austrians, especially to lose on their home field against their most important rival. The best example is Austrias Hermann Maier, one of the greatest personalities in alpine ski racing. 3, he performed pretty well and crossed the finish line with a time of 1:46.06, giving him the lead. He is considered the best-ever Downhill skier who dominated the competitions in the seventies and the eighties. A season earlier in 1974-75, he won an unprecedented eight World Cup downhills. February 18 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. Chasing the Line. The feature-length film debuted with a screening Sept. 27 at the Zurich Film Festival. The story of Franz Klammer is the story of ski racing in Carinthia. So I decided to take even more risks.. And that was the main obstacle to tackle before developing a script.. Here the Austrians and Swiss pit their best. There is tough and turny Patscherkofel above Innsbruck, site of the 1976 Olympics and the magnificent victory of the Austrian Franz Klammer in a performance that is considered the best single downhill run ever made. Franz Klammer. Where to find Franz Klammer 1976 Innsbruck downhill video? Klammer abandoned the acknowledged optimum track and chased a line that had never been skied on Patscherkofel. At the end of the 1975 season, despite having won 8 of 9 downhills, he finished third for the overall World Cup title. Nobody had ever had a string of victories like that. So I decided to take even more risks than I had planned, especially in the Ochsenschlag section. Eight years after Sapporo, La Proell had enjoyed a superb revenge. Bernhard and I, we are really close friends and appreciate each others company. Thanks for bringing that memory back. 1- 1980 USA vs USSR Olympic Hockey Game. I gave him the local phone number of Austrias media coordinator, who did receive a call from Idaho after Hermanns amazing comeback in Super G. Schwarzenegger was so impressed by Hermanns triumph and his funny nickname that he wanted to speak to him. Im a passionate skier myself. ! After his 1978 World Cup win, Klammer's performances stagnated for several years, not winning a World Cup race until 1981. He was able to hold his line on a difficult course, while established speed specialists struggled. In fact, the course contributed to new technology in ski construction, ultimately leading to the parabolic shaped skis now used by most recreational skiers. Many still call it the greatest downhill of all time. He won his first aged only 19 in 1973 and including four victories in the Hahnenkamm at Kitzbuhel. He was so eager to play the Franz Klammer and do it right.. And Klammer was winning big on its C4 skis. Franz Klammer is a former champion alpine ski racer from Austria..who overwhelmingly dominated the downhill event for four consecutive World Cup sea. Klammer seemed doomed. I said to myself, Franz, now you have to do something because youre going to lose, he said. But producers chose to recreate the historic 1976 race down Patscherkofel. So I really wanted to give the audience a real feel for the people in the story.. However, the Swiss . Challenge in hand, Pochlatko took the film concept to director and screenwriter Andreas Schmied of Samsara Filmproduktion. With the original incredible commentary by ABC USA broadcasters Frank Gifford and Bob Beattie. As he drove through the Austrian countryside from Klagenfurt to Villach, Kresse was quick to point out a little-known fact about Carinthian skiing. And still, he does everything right! And she is still playing one of the most important roles in my life. Pochlatko tracked down the director to talk about his engagement in telling Franz story. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Hes quick to talk about stars of the sport like Alberto Tomba, Hermann Maier and Bode Miller. But, with Eva, it was immediate. Rahlves, too, is in a fascinating place in Austrian ski history. His rival, Russi, drew number 3 the optimum start position given weather conditions. Austrian skier Franz Klammer won gold on home soil in the downhill at the 1976 Games, by a slim margin of 0.33 seconds. Nobody went there to see if it was possible or not. 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. This was the 1976 Winter Olympic Games in Innsbruck - the men's downhill, the blue riband event - and the yellow flash was Franz Klammer, Austrian national hero and pre-race favourite. Whether I win it or crash, there was nothing in between. Italy's Gustav Thni defeated Sweden's Ingemar Stenmark in the finals and won his fourth overall title in five years. Ill call him.. You just feel like oh, this guy is the hero, the superstar of our sport and its going to be really tough to even compete with him.. The risk was too great and the snow was wrong. Klammer said. Two or three times we tried to bring a good story. I cant believe it, he has been amazing! Stewart said. A huge crowd had amassed along the edge of the piste and at the finish line for the star event at the Innsbruck Games. I knew that Daron understood how Klammer was skiing, said Salmina. The following season he regained the World Cup Downhill title, his fifth, followed by the 1984 victory at Kitzbuehel, his fourth on the Hahnenkamm. This is where most biopics fail. Pepi Fischer was omnipresent, pushing hard to force Klammer to use his new ski. After beating Collombin and Russi at Schladming in December 1973 under terrible conditions, Collombin bested him at Garmisch, Avoriaz and Wengen. But it was also complex. I hope it lasts forever., Storyline in hand, casting the right actors became the next challenge. He took over after the sudden death of his father in 1959. We enjoyed watching Katarina claim her second Olympic title after a brilliant show. But the skating star didnt meet Alberto afterwards. Darren Glen 1.1M views 3 years ago Frank Gifford discusses covering Franz Klammer's Olympic. Yet this time, she was the hunter: Nadig had dominated the previous downhill races, winning six out of seven, as well as a giant slalom. Here it is !! One of the most important things I got out of sport were friendships, said Klammer. Andreas and Elisabeth Schied found both. Franz everyone knows him!, In his heart, Kresse believed in the story. Twice he took the concept to filmmakers and twice it went nowhere. 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.. Apparently they also threw quite a party at Arnies suite at the Hyatt Hotel to celebrate the wins. Ill never forget how we all erupted when he crossed the finish line. Patrick Ortliebs win was the first surprise of the mens Olympics events at Val dIsre, yet he confirmed his success in the following seasons with significant triumphs on the World Cup tour, including winning the legendary Hahnenkamm race at Kitzbhel. 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. This success means a lot to me after all those years, she told reporters at the post-race press conference that I was running in the modest base lodge of the resort. This one was different. He had won the pre-Olympic downhill on Patscherkofel over Russi in 1975. 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. While much can be said about fame, few superstar ski racers started their careers just to seek glory. Yes. His fans adored his down-to-earth personality and his aggressive style. 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. An ABC van brought us from the medal plaza to the Saddledome arena. The whole family was sitting in front of the TV. Just the idea of making a film about Franz Klammer is not very easy from a filmmakers perspective, he said. They were at my grandparents (house) and they watched the race with the neighbors. He was adorable, said Witt of her time with La Bomba. It turned out that powerful skiers could exit the turns with amazing acceleration, a situation that caused some spectacular crashes. Franz Klammer - Free download as Text File (.txt), PDF File (.pdf) or read online for free. Klammer, a simple young man, was more comfortable with the C4s. In 1975 he had dominated the event in a fashion never seen before by winning 8 out of the nine downhill races of the season. But she was always a huge support from the beginning, sitting always in the background and just being there. I knew that Franz Klammer his victory and his legend basically would be enough to sell the movie on his name and this emotional story. And, it needed a bit of a love story. After Schranz flew back to Vienna, where he was welcomed by a huge crowd on the main square, La Proell did her best to recoup, yet could not achieve her potential on race days. Franz Klammer produced one of the most thrilling moments in alpine racing history with his reckless gold-medal run on the treacherous Patscherkofel downhill course at Innsbruck, Austria in February 1976. I think he is skiing right now at Sun Valley and I know his ski instructor. We had briefly seen Witt during our walk under the crowded stands, as she was exercising with her trainer, Jutta Mueller. He was the overwhelming favorite for Gold with the home crowd there to watch. I was so focused, I was so concentrated, just on the run and then half-way down, I was looking at the crowd, kind of now I'd better do something to win the race. Olympic triumph. Is she also French? I asked him at the 2013 World Cup season start at Soelden. Chasing the Line screenplay does a masterful job in capturing the pressure he felt that week. It was the best babysitter because I was already out there on skis, skiing up and down to a little village up in the mountain. So heres the real deal! Klammer, along with fellow Carinthia natives Fritz Strobl and Matthias Mayer, form a unique trio of Olympic downhill champions more than any other Austrian state, even the Tyrol. And suddenly, there were 60,000 people in the stadium and the whole mountain started to shake, Bernhard Russi explains. His home village did not have any ski lifts, so as a child he climbed up the pasture behind his house to ski downhill. Amazingly, the victory comes eight years after his Olympic Games victory in Innsbruck. Several times he sailed through the air with arms flailing and skis askew, but he always. Russi vividly recalls the long wait in the finish and the momentum of the crowd that carried Franz Klammer to victory. I remember the race we were in the living room watching on TV in black and white, said Salmina, who was 11 at the time. [citation needed], Inspired by his younger brother Klaus, who was paralysed from the waist down after a crash in a downhill at the age of 16,[1] Klammer has established the Franz Klammer Foundation, which benefits seriously injured athletes.[6]. Old School. Above: Maier on the GS course in Nagano. Enter 22-year old Franz Klammer. At the World Championships from 1954 through 1980, the combined was a "paper race" using the results of the three events (DH, GS, SL). Every 4 years at the Winter Olympics, the premier event is the mens downhill. The pressure on the young farm boy from Mooswald was immense. Five World Cup downhill crystal globes (most ever for men). 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. Alongside the ski track outside Innsbruck, 60,000 fans lined the piste. He just did it!. He also called other sports. I really was happy of course, and relieved, that I did my greatest race, or my most important run. 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. They start for the love of the sport. [1], In an interview with Tom Brokaw that aired on NBC on 13 February 2010, as part of their 2010 Winter Olympics coverage, American Olympian Bode Miller cited Klammer's style and approach to ski racing as a major source of inspiration for him. Somehow he survived, etching his name into history with a .33-second margin over Russi. Rahlves used his own Atomic boots, touched up with paint to create an authentic 1976 look. After that, he was known as The Herminator. We were hiking all day long and skiing., He rode his first chairlift at eight, and he didnt start ski racing until he was 14. The next day, Tomba finished a strong second in a slalom dominated by Norways Finn Jagge. At 1.35 is when he takes a line that no other skier dared to on the day and that is to cut harder left, slingshotting him forward faster. And the Olympics were returning to the Alps after a sojourn to Sapporo in 1972. In 1990, Klammer won a round of the prestigious European Touring Car Championship. Klammer had seen many film proposals over the years, but they all hit hurdles. His tiny village of Mooswald, north of Villach, was situated in the mountains but without a ski lift. 01:59. He approached me to ask if I had a concept on how to make a film about Franz Klammer, said Pochlatko. So I changed the line completely. Franz Klammer records his fourth victory on the famed Hahnenkamm in Kitzbuhel, Austria. He didnt and he won the gold medal. The steep and sinuous La Face course at Val dIsre, France, which was built in the late 1980s by Switzerlands Bernhard Russi, the 1972 mens downhill Olympic champion, launched an unexpected revolution in the sport. He won 4 more times in 1976 leading up to the Olympics. Each competitor who followed failed to best his time, until there was only one skier left who was capable of beating him: Franz Klammer. All I could find on Youtube was dodgy edited versions showing only half of the run, parts in slow motion or snippets that just frustrate the hell out of you. Only a few months later, Franz told me how he managed to clinch that title after his fantastic run. I thought, Franz is the most famous Carinthian and we should do something with him, said Kresse. We had really long talks about how the movie should be filmed. A dozen years earlier on the same course in 1964, Egon Zimmermann posted a 2:18.16 to win the gold medal. His younger brother, Klaus, was paralyzed from the waist down due to a downhill ski accident when the boy was 16. The story of a day like no other We would be right to consider him the greatest downhill skier of all time. 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. He was a very legendary skier, said Mayer, the son of Helmut Mayer, the 1988 Olympic super-G silver medalist in Nakiska. For nearly a half-century, the story of the country boy finding gold has begged for the silver screen. Franz Klammer (born 3 December 1953) is a former champion alpine ski racer from Austria. To understand the 1976 Olympic downhill, you need to look back a few years in time. Klammer spoke for all skiers in one of the final scenes. I knew I will do it, he explains, I was full of confidence, I knew I can pull it off, and at any time, I learned how to win a race: concentrate, just on your race, you and the mountain and not thinking about anybody else. The feats of this exceptional downhill skier include this total domination of the 1974-1975 season, with eight victories in the nine races of the programme, a run, straddling the two following seasons, of 10 consecutive wins and another record: five small discipline crystal globes, won consecutively from 1975 to 1978, then in 1983. The bad ones are almost like little Franz gets his keys and then hes a teenager. The fear of many was that the remarkable success of the Austrian ski racer would get passed by over the generations. This is all the sweeter when it is won in front of more than 60,000 focused supporters and millions of Austrians gathered in front of their TV sets across the country. He was adorable, said Witt of her time with La Bomba. [1] The following season he finished second in the downhill standings behind Roland Collombin of Switzerland. And what are you doing? Im studying medicine. And that was all we talked about. Your email address will not be published. Ryan didnt need much time to get hold of Schwarzeneggers Austrian-born ski instructor, Adi Erber, and to organize a crew to do an interview with the movie star. 1 mo. This is not a good story for a film because you need the emotional roller coaster. 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. Nearly two hours later, they came back smiling. When I went out of the starting gate, I knew I was going to win that race, said Klammer. He watches every ski race men and women. Russi had won the 1972 Olympic Gold Medal in Sapporo, Japan. Ortliebs daughter, a tall racer and 17-year-old beauty named Nina, is now a member of the Austrian C squad after achieving some promising international results. Most of this was not known in 1976, when Franz Klammer had the weight of a nation on his shoulder as he embarked on his unforgettable journey down the slopes of Patscherkofel. At 60, Franz Klammer remains a charismatic and ruggedly dishy figure, along Liam Neeson lines. Ever since I can remember, I have been on skis. About that same time, Klammer had seen a film Schmied had directed about a Carinthian ice hockey player, Harrinator, that had been released that year. If anybody could do it, its for sure Hermann, I explained with great optimism. After trailing Russi by .20 of a second at the second intermediate time he made up more than half a second on the bottom portion of the course to win in 1:45.73. Hes loved by everybody and he had an amazing career. 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. Franz Klammer can be considered the greatest downhill skier of all time having won 25 downhill races, a record that still stands today in the men's race. 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. Photo caption:Italian superstarAlberto 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. Swiss favorite Bernhard Russi, who two years earlier had won Olympic gold in Sapporo, was 13th. Alpine Skiing. Their story was truly one for the big screen. Another surprise was revealed later when my father, World Cup founder Serge Lang, intrigued by Patricks last name, discovered that he was a double national: Austrian, as he was born in that country from an Austrian mother, but also French through his dad, a cook from Alsace, who had emigrated to Lech to work, raise a family and run the Montana Hotel there. The final event was a parallel slalom and Klammer lost in the first round. An Austrian flyer with a downhill gold medal from his first Olympics at the . Media coverage was moving into a golden era, with more live television and a bigger platform for burgeoning sport stars. He won the gold medal in the downhill event at the 1976 Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria. He would win 31 downhills in World Cup competition. One of them had also briefly mentioned The Herminator, a combination of his first name and the invincible Terminator movie character, played by another Austrian legend, Arnold Schwarzenegger. It was totally, totally quiet. Every set of Austrian eyes were tuned in to ORF across the far corners of the land. The Klammer story, yah, it was epic, said Schmied, a Styrian-born writer and director who, like most Austrians, was on skis before he was two. Klammer dominated the downhill event for four consecutive World Cup seasons (1975-78). Annemarie Moser-Proell dominated her time as no other skier before and after her. Franz KLAMMER. This can only be described as a Kamikaze run on the edge of suicide. And there is this one teacher who says, follow your dreams, or whatever. Schmied literally grew up with the Klammer legend. The pressure intensified again when Klammer drew the 15th spot for his Olympic run. But he bounced back with ferocity, and resumed his onward march. It includes the original US broadcast commentary from ABC. In 1974, he took home World Championship gold in combined at St. Moritz, silver in downhill. 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