Garmisch-Partenkirchen tops Schladming for 2011 alpine World Championships

By Published On: May 26th, 2006Comments Off on Garmisch-Partenkirchen tops Schladming for 2011 alpine World Championships

Garmisch-Partenkirchen tops Schladming for 2011 alpine World Championships{mosimage}VILLAMOURA, Portugal Garmisch- Partenkirchen, Germany, the picturesque Bavarian town with its gingerbread architecture and the Zugspitze towering behind it, finally achieved a 12-year dream when the International Ski Federation voted it the site for the 2011 alpine World Championships.

Cheers rose throughout the cavernous hall where more than 700 FIS officials, delegates and event organizers gathered to hear the results in a contest between Schladming, Austria, and the winner.

Garmisch started on its long road to a successful bid in 1994 and despite setback after setback persevered to finally gain the event.

‘This is a victory for Garmisch-Partenkirchen, but more importantly it is a victory for Germany and ski sport in Germany,â€? said Fritz Wagnerberger, the FIS council member for the nation and a longtime FIS official.

Wagnerberger, who was the managing director and a part owner of Bogner, has been a vital member of the FIS for more than 30 years, acting as the association’s financial expert and advisor.

He was totally frustrated at the 2004 FIS Congress in Miami when the Garmisch bid garnered only one vote from the 17 members of the FIS Council. In an emotional address to the council, Wagnerberger resigned and left the Miami meeting, only to be persuaded to return to his position by cooler heads.

In gaining the bid, the Garmisch organizing committee told the FIS it planned to replace seven lifts on the Zugspitze, raising the per-hour capacity from 6,500 skiers to more than 15,000. In addition to making substantial changes to the famous Kandahar downhill to modernize and toughen it, the committee said snowmaking will be added to most of the lower mountain.

‘I am really excited about the opportunity to race at home,â€? said Maria Riesch, the towering blonde racer who many say is the future of alpine skiing for Germany. ‘I wasn’t tense about the vote,â€? she added. ‘If you get too tight, losing is terrible.â€?

Riesch and men’s team member Felix Neureuther, a young, talented technical skier whose parents — Rosi Mittermaier and Christian Neureuther — were Olympic and World Championships medalists, helped present the GarmischPartenkirchen bid.

Schladming took the loss gracefully, with Austrian Ski Federation president Peter Schroecksnadel offering congratulations but promising to be back in two years with a bid for the 2013 alpine World Championships.

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