Hermann Reitberger (born September 21, 1958 ) is a former German freestyle skier . He specialized in the no longer played ballet (acro) discipline, in which, in addition to two world championships, he won the demonstration competition at the 1988 Winter Olympics . In addition, he achieved 44 World Cup victories and won the discipline five times, making him the most successful athlete in this discipline.
Reitberger was significantly involved in the development of freestyle skiing and helped to bring this sport to international competition maturity ( European championships , world championships and Olympic winter games ). With 44 World Cup victories, he himself set a record in the Freestyle Skiing World Cup, which was only surpassed in December 2017 by the Canadian Moguls specialist Mikaël Kingsbury .
He made his debut in the World Cup in its first season in 1980 . Reitberger's winning streak in ski ballet began at the European Championships in 1982 when he became European champion straight away. He also won this title at the European Championships in 1985, 1987 and 1990. In 1984/85, 1985/86, 1986/87 and 1988/89 he won the World Cup discipline rankings. The highlight of his streak of success was the victory in ballet at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary , when three freestyle skiing disciplines were held as demonstration competitions. For this victory, which is also considered a world championship, he was awarded the Silver Laurel Leaf . At the 1989 World Championships on Oberjoch , he was able to successfully defend the gold medal. In 1991 Reitbeger ended his career in competitive sports.
Hermann Reitberger was named Sportsman of the Year from his hometown Eggenfelden for 1981, 1982, 1983 and 1989.
Hermann Reitberger was also active as a sports writer. In 1999 his book Skiboarding was published by Rowohlt Verlag .
Germany
