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Renate Goetschl

Renate Goetschl, who suffered a terrible crash in the downhill at Lenzerheide at the end of the 2002 season, is the most successful alpine skier on the Austrian women’s team since the great days of Annemarie Moser-Proell and Petra Kronberger, who dominated the “White Circus” in the 1970’s and the early 1990’s. Interestingly enough, all three live in the same region south of Salzburg!
A winner in twenty-three World Cup events in four disciplines since March 1993, Renate just added two Olympic medals to her impressive collection of five World Championships medals clinched from 1997 to 2001. She was 3rd in downhill and 2nd in combined at Snowbasin!
In March 2000, she also conquered her first Overall World Cup title after a tough battle against her team-mate and friend Michaela Dorfmeister.
Goetschl strongly believes in her capacity to come back at her best level after this first serious ski accident. Renate who’s known to be a strong-minded fighter only turned 27 in August 2002 and she feels ready for much more.
Yet despite her young age, Goetschl is already a veteran on the tour – she competed in her tenth World Cup season in 2002.
She was only 17 and unknown when she stunned the alpine world in March '93 by winning a World Cup slalom in Hajfell, Norway, one of the test events for the '94 Olympics. And she did it starting way back in the pack — bib number 42. On top of that, it was her first World Cup appearance.
One year later she proved she could race downhill, too, finishing second at St. Anton where she won the combined event. Then the Austrian consolidated her position as a top speed skier by winning a Super-G in '95, but it was two seasons later before she would reach higher summits.
The relaxed blond won the combined World Championship in '97 at Sestriere, making her the only Austrian to clinch a gold medal in Italy. At the end of the season, she surprised everybody again by taking the downhill World Cup title, defeating Warwara Zelenskaja (Russia), Heidi Zurbriggen (Switzerland) and Katja Seizinger (Germany) in a close race at the World Cup finals in Vail, Colorado. No Austrian had won that crown since the great Annemarie Moser-Proell in 1979.
However things didn't go as well in '98 at the Nagano Olympics. Goetschl was one of the fastest skiers at the final intermediate time of the Super-G. But a small mistake just before the finish line cost her a place on the podium. Her problems continued when she skied out in the downhill.
At least, Renate gained much experience from those two disasters and was more focused and determined than ever during the 1998/ 1999 season.
At the Vail World Championships, she won the downhill gold medal and added two silver medals in Super-G and combined.
She was out of reach in the downhill World Cup standings thanks to her four victories. She ended a promising 3rd in the final Overall Standings won by Alexandra Meissnitzer!
Always a very aggressive racer on course, Goetschl proved again her potential in the technical events. During the 1999/2000 season, she had a hard time to find her best rhythm at the beginning in the speed events, but she often clocked very fast intermediate times in slalom and GS. Finally she captured her first Crystal globe with her six victories and plenty of top-10 places in all specialties including three wins in combined.
In December 2000, she celebrated the 500th Austrian World Cup victory in dominating a downhill at St Moritz!

The charming Renate who also became a good friend of Janica Kostelic, graduated from the Schladming Ski School in '93. She lives south of Salzburg on the family farm in the village of Obdach, near Altenmark, where she normally rides her motorbike in the summer. In 2002, she had to spent more time and energy on her rehabilitation, but as Hermann Maier, she loves ski racing too much to give it up now!

Patrick Lang