07 FEB 2001 > Men's Downhill
Trinkl Becomes Oldest Medalist
Downhill Results

An Austrian success was expected in today's men's downhill, but the winner was a surprise. Hannes Trinkl became the oldest World Champion in the history of alpine ski racing. He beat his famous teammate Hermann Maier, who was 2nd, after an impressive run on the Karl Schranz downhill course. German underdog Florian Eckert reached a surprising 3rd place.

"It's great to win such a race at home, but it should not change my life too much."

Trinkl, a 33-year-old veteran ski racer, was not expected to do so well in this major event. A bronze medal winner at Nagano in 1998, he didn't make the Austrian team in the 1997 or 1999 World Championships. But he has won five races - the last in March 2000 during the World Cup finals in Bormio, Italy.

This year he qualified for the team by finishing 2nd at Kitzbühel. He prepared quietly, in the shadow of the other Austrian leaders. Weighing in at 220 pounds, Trinkl seems as powerful on his skis as a sumo-wrestler in the ring. He enjoys steaming down tough, bumpy courses, especially when the snow is soft, as it was in Bormio, the last time he beat Maier.

He likes to take risks, and his crashes are often huge, such last year when he crashed at Beaver Creek and Lake Louise. But he is as quiet on skis as in life. And he never loses his fighting spirit or his confidence.

"It was a rough course because of the smooth snow, and I had my problems in the upper part," he explained after the race. "I felt ready for this race... It's great to win such a race at home, but it should not change my life too much."

Trinkl, father of three children, lives in the northeastern part of Austria. His home is not close to the famous ski areas such as Tirol and Salzburg, and he struggled to make the national team because of it. His parents run a farm and raise cattle, and he helps them in the summer. He ultimately aims to become a forester. "This helps me to keep my feet on the ground," he explained.

Today, at the finish line, Trinkl received warm congratulations from Maier, who didn't seem upset by his narrow defeat. Maier complained that he received some bad advice from the coaches at the start regarding his line in the first part of the course where he lost some time.

"I tried as hard as possible, so I can't be disappointed, even if I was hoping for a better position," Maier said. "I would have enjoyed a tie with Hannes, but this silver medal is fine too. It's my first one, and there is still a race left, the GS tomorrow. After bronze and silver, gold would be fine. I will attack as usual."

Switzerland's Silvano Beltrametti was 4th ahead of America's Daron Rahlves and two other Austrian favorites, Fritz Strobl and Stephan Eberharter.

USA's Rahlves was disappointed after having clocked some promising times during training last week. He was a half-second faster than Trinkl at the second split time but lost his advantage on the lower, more bumpy section of the course. "I was all over the place, but I thought I was faster. I don't understand where I lost so much time, but I can't complain about these World Championships. This is still one of my best results in downhill. I'm excited to go back home now and rest a while before the races at Snowbasin. Then we go to Lillehammer -- there are still some good races for me."

Rahlves will also compete in the next men's race, a giant slalom on Thursday. Both Hermann Maier and Michael von Gruenigen have dominated the giant slalom standings in the past five years, but Maier still misses a World Championships gold medal in that speciality. Also among the contenders for a medal, USA's Erik Schlopy, 2nd at Bormio in December.

— Patrick Lang, World Cup Correspondent

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