At the end of the 2015/16 Audi FIS Ski World Cup season, several athletes decided to bid farewell to their skiing careers and move on to new adventures. Meanwhile, a number of teams will start preparations for the upcoming season with new head coaches.
Below is an overview of the retirements and coach changes which have occurred to date.
Reinfried Herbst (AUT, 1978)
Slalom specialist Reinfried Herbst raced his last slalom in Kranjska Gora (SLO) in early March. The Austrian looks back on an impressive career with 126 FIS World Cup starts, 16 podiums, nine victories (two of them on home turf in Schladming), an Olympic silver medal (Torino 2006) and the slalom crystal globe in 2009/10.
Daniela Merighetti (ITA, 1981)
With 228 World Cup starts under her belt, FIS Athletes’ Commission member Daniela Merighetti decided to retire. Her career achievements include six podiums, one victory (downhill in Cortina d’Ampezzo in 2012) and two seventh places in the downhill standings in 2012 and 2013. Unfortunately, she was injured during a crash in her final race and ended her career with a torn ACL.
Massimiliano Blardone (ITA, 1979)
In his final season, giant slalom specialist Massimiliano Blardone made it back to the podium with a third place finish in Yuzawa Naeba (JPN). As the second oldest giant slalom athlete, he ended his final season ranked 16th after an impressive 153 FIS World Cup starts, 25 podiums and seven victories.
Cyprien Richard (FRA, 1979)
The French giant slalom specialist competed on the circuit for 16 years and completed 81 World Cup races where he claimed four podiums. 2011 was Richard’s golden year with giant slalom silver at the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships in Garmisch-Partenkirchen (GER), his sole World Cup win came in Adelboden (SUI) and a third place finish in the overall giant slalom rankings.
Marco Sullivan (USA, 1980)
After 15 years on the World Cup tour, Sullivan ended his career after completing his 105th downhill race. He competed in 167 FIS World Cup races where he claimed four podiums, including a victory in the downhill in Chamonix (FRA) in 2008.
Further retirements include:
Barbara Wirth (GER, 1989)
71 World Cup starts, best performance: 9th in slalom (Bormio 2014)
Silvano Varettoni (ITA, 1984)
71 World Cup starts, best performance: 4th in downhill (Garmisch-Partenkirchen 2015)
Markus Vogel (SUI, 1984)
63 World Cup starts, best performance: 6th in slalom (Madonna di Campiglio 2012)
Coaching changes
Stéphane Quittet
After nine years in with the French National Team, first as a coach and later as chief of the World Cup tech team, Stéphane Quittet stepped down for personal reasons. The French Ski Association appointed Frédéric Perrin the new head of the tech team, who was already a member of the staff.
Steve Locher
Changes also occurred within the Italian men’s tech team. Raimund Plancker has moved to the speed coaching staff and Steve Locher was appointed as new chief of the tech team. The Swiss coach is coming back from a year away from the World Cup circuit after previously spending three years with the Swiss slalom team.
Matteo Guadagnini
The Italian Ski Association announced the appointment of Matteo Guadagnini as the new ladies’ head coach. The Italian already trained several men’s World Cup teams in the past.
Jacques Théolier
With Frenchman Jacques Théolier, Sweden will have a new chief of the men’s World Cup tech team. The 55-year-old spent many years coaching in France, Italy and Switzerland and will coach the Swedish tech specialists up to the 2019 World Championships in Are.
Stefan Ablanalp
The Swiss coach, who has previously coached the Norwegian and American speed ladies, announced that he will work for the Hungarian Ski Association. Ablanalp’s main focus will be on Edit Miklos, who finished 14th in the downhill rankings this season.
Source: fis-ski.com
