Rainer Schönfelder

Rainer Schönfelder
Rainer Schönfelder in March 2008
nation	Austria
birthday	13th June 1977 (age 43)
place of birth	Wolfsberg , Austria
size	176 cm
Weight	88 kg
Career
discipline	Slalom , giant slalom , downhill , super-G , combination
society	SC Petzen
status	resigned
End of career	October 2013
Medal table
Olympic games 0 × 0 × 2 × World championships 0 × 2 × 0 × Junior World Championship 2 × 1 × 0 ×
winter Olympics bronze Turin 2006 slalom bronze Turin 2006 combination  Alpine World Ski Championships silver Bormio 2005 slalom silver Bormio 2005 team  Alpine Ski Junior World Championships gold Hoch-Ybrig 1996 Giant slalom gold Hoch-Ybrig 1996 combination silver Hoch-Ybrig 1996 slalom
Placements in the Alpine Ski World Cup
Individual World Cup debut March 9, 1996  Individual world cup victories 5  Overall World Cup 10. ( 2003/04 )  Downhill World Cup 29th ( 2007/08 )  Super G World Cup 35th ( 2005/06 )  Giant Slalom World Cup 13th (2005/06)  Slalom World Cup 1. (2003/04)  Combination World Cup 4th (2005/06)
Podium placements 1. 2. 3.  Giant slalom 0 0 1  slalom 5 7th 4th  combination 0 2 3

Chart positions Explanation of the data

Singles

Schifoan   AT 19th 12/09/2001 (7 weeks) Pop music   AT 12 01/19/2003 (5 weeks)

Rainer Schönfelder (born June 13, 1977 in Wolfsberg ) is a former Austrian ski racer . He mainly specialized in the technical disciplines of slalom and giant slalom , but in the course of his career he often started in combinations as well as in downhill and super-G . Schönfelder was one of the world's best slalom runners for several years, won five World Cup slaloms and the slalom World Cup in the 2003/04 season . He also won four medals at world championships and the Olympic Games and was two times junior world champion and Austrian champion . From 2008 to 2010 his career was interrupted several times by injuries. In addition to his work as an athlete, he also performed as a singer .

biography

Athletic career

Rainer Schönfelder was born in Wolfsberg , but is from southern Carinthia and has the Bleiburg- based SC Petzen-Unterland as his home club, the Petzen ski area offered him the opportunity to develop in sport. That is why he was (and will be later) given the nickname “Peztenbär” by the local media. Schönfelder achieved his first successes on a national level at the beginning of the 1990s with five victories at the Austrian school championships. From 1994 to 1996 four victories at the Austrian Youth Championships and the combination victory at the Austrian Championships in 1996 were added. At the international level, he first stepped into the limelight at the 1996 Junior World Championships in Hoch-Ybrig , when he won the giant slalom and the combined and came second in the slalom. The combination victory was made possible by rank 12 in the downhill, because this rating was determined from the results of the three aforementioned individual disciplines. Also in 1996 he achieved his first podium in the European Cup with third place in the slalom on Sella Nevea . As junior world champion in giant slalom, he was also able to take part in a World Cup race for the first time at the season finale in Hafjell , in which he finished twelfth.

From the 1998/99 season Schönfelder started regularly in the World Cup - initially only in slalom and from next winter also in giant slalom. After several top 10 placements, he celebrated his first World Cup victory on February 6, 2000 in the slalom in Todtnau , which was also his first podium - and this after only 9th place after the first run. In the 1999/2000 season he was among the top ten in the Slalom World Cup for the first time, where he stayed for the next five years. In the winter of 2000/01 , there were two more World Cup podium places in the slaloms of the 3-tre races in Madonna di Campiglio and the Lauberhorn races in Wengen . At the 2001 World Championships in St. Anton am Arlberg , he just missed the medal ranks as fourth in the combination and sixth in the slalom. Again he was fourth the following year in the combined combination of the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City . In the Olympic slalom, he was eliminated in the first round. Schönfelder's good combined results showed his potential in the fast downhill and super-G disciplines, although at that time he had not competed in either the World or European Cup. In the World Cup, the 2001/02 season brought his second victory in the slalom of Kitzbühel and the 2002/03 season brought the third and fourth victory in the slalom of Park City and Shigakogen . He finished the Slalom World Cup in third position in 2002/03. The 2003 World Championship in St. Moritz was less successful, however , where he finished tenth in the combined but was eliminated in the first round of the slalom.

In the 2003/04 season , Schönfelder was extremely consistent with top 5 placements in nine of the eleven World Cup slaloms. He was on the podium five times and celebrated his fifth and final World Cup victory in the Adelboden slalom. With this he secured the Slalom World Cup with a lead of 35 points over the four-time slalom season winner Kalle Palander . The slalom on November 23, 2003 in Park City, in which Schönfelder was second (behind Palander), was also decisive for winning the discipline. The Carinthian felt hindered by a marshal in the first run and was allowed to repeat the run, and ultimately the FIS confirmed the result on December 1 with Schönfelder in second place.

On April 16, 2004 it became public that Schönfelder was suspected of doping because he had tested positive for the substance etilefrin at the Austrian championships . The stimulant, which was banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency during sports competitions, was contained in a drug against colds that Schönfelder had taken. Since he had not intentionally ingested the substance, he was only given a warning by the Austrian Ski Association (ÖSV) on May 11th.

In the 2004/05 season Schönfelder did not win, but with three podium places he finished second in the Slalom World Cup behind Benjamin Raich . For the first time he was able to win medals at major events this winter: At the World Ski Championships in Bormio in 2005 , he finished second behind Raich in the slalom and, together with his teammates, second behind the German team in the team competition, which was held for the first time. In the next year he was twice on the podium at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin : He won the bronze medal in slalom behind his compatriots Benjamin Raich and Reinfried Herbst and also the bronze medal in combination behind Ted Ligety and Ivica Kostelić . In the 2005/06 season , Schönfelder did not achieve the results of previous years in his special discipline slalom in the World Cup . For the first time in six years he was without a podium, which is why he fell back to 14th place in the Slalom World Cup. In the giant slalom, on the other hand, at the season opener on Rettenbachferner in Sölden , he achieved the best placement of his career with third place. After Schönfelder had already participated in combinations several times with good results at major events, this winter he also started in the World Cup for the first time in super combinations and in a super G and achieved two second places in the super combinations of Val-d'Isère and Chamonix Places.

With several top 10 results as well as a third place in the super combination of Beaver Creek Schönfelder started the World Cup winter 2006/07 . In the further course of the season, however, the rankings deteriorated due to health problems and the number of failures increased, which is why he fell back in all discipline rankings and in the overall World Cup for the first time in eight years did not make the top 30. At the 2007 World Championships in Åre , after a failure in the slalom, only a 16th place in the combination and the 25th place in the giant slalom were recorded. In order to improve his results again, Schönfelder went into the following 2007/08 World Cup season as an “all-rounder” and now started in all five disciplines - for the first time also in the downhill. As in previous years, he achieved his best results in the combination or super combination with two third places in Kitzbühel and Chamonix. In the slalom he was able to improve again and in the downhill he surprised with a fourth place in Chamonix. Finally, he managed to make it back to the top 15 of the overall World Cup. In addition, he was Austrian Super-G Champion in 2008 .

The following three years were marked by numerous injuries, which forced Schönfelder to take several breaks from racing and as a result of which he achieved hardly any results. Because of a nerve damage in his left lower leg, which he suffered while entering the first giant slalom in Sölden, he ended the 2008/09 season prematurely in January so that , after a break, he could start preparing for the next season. At the beginning of December 2009 he suffered a meniscus injury in his left knee during downhill training on the Birds of Prey slope in Beaver Creek, which again forced him to take a break of several weeks. On January 6, he returned to the World Cup at the slalom in Zagreb , but three weeks later he ended the season prematurely after unsuccessful qualification for the 2010 Winter Olympics . In February he had to undergo an operation because of a previously undetected cruciate ligament tear. From January 2011 Schönfelder took part in World Cup races again, but at his eight starts in the 2010/11 season he remained without results. After the winter he was released from the ÖSV squad, which is why he had to prepare for the 2011/12 season at his own expense.

After good training performance, when he showed two second places in New Zealand in preparation , Schönfelder was nominated for World Cup slaloms by the ÖSV in winter 2011/12 . In the first four races of the season he remained unsuccessful until he reached 14th place in the Adelboden slalom on January 8, 2012 with the fastest time in the second round , thus winning World Cup points for the first time in over two years. In the 2012/13 season he remained without a countable result. In mid-October 2013, Schönfelder announced that he wanted to take part in the 2014 Winter Olympics. But ten days later, on October 26th, he spontaneously announced his resignation. Immediately before the first race of the season in Sölden, he drove down the racing slope in a ski suit from the 1970s and said goodbye to the fans in this way.

Away from racing

Schönfelder shortly after his Dancing Stars victory (2013)

In addition to his work as an athlete, Schönfelder also appeared as a singer . His first single Schifoan was released in autumn 2001 and the second single Popmusic in January 2003 , both of which made it into the top 20 of the Austrian charts . With his extroverted manner, Schönfelder was long considered a “colorful bird”. He has been seen with painted fingernails for some time and has appeared on several television shows and series. He caused a sensation in Wengen in January 2007 when he cashed a bet on the non-training day and drove naked on the slopes. For this he was punished by the Austrian Ski Association with one day of social service. His comeback for the 2009/10 season was accompanied by a film camera and broadcast weekly on the Internet.

In 2013 he won the eighth season of Dancing Stars together with his dance partner Manuela Stöckl . In the same year he launched his own investment fund, which was supposed to be managed according to sustainability criteria, but was closed again in 2014.

On January 29, 2016, he and Hermann Maier opened a hotel in St. Johann in Tirol .

successes

Olympic games

• Salt Lake City 2002 : 4th combination
• Turin 2006 : 3rd slalom, 3rd combination, 8th giant slalom

World championships

• St. Anton 2001 : 4th combination, 6th slalom
• St. Moritz 2003 : 10th combination
• Bormio 2005 : 2nd slalom, 2nd team competition, 8th giant slalom
• Åre 2007 : 16th super combined, 25th giant slalom

World Cup ratings

Rainer Schönfelder once won the slalom discipline.

season	total		Departure		Super G		Giant slalom		slalom		combination
	space	Points	space	Points	space	Points	space	Points	space	Points	space	Points
1995/96	115.	22nd	-	-	-	-	39.	22nd	-	-	-	-
1998/99	63.	97	-	-	-	-	-	-	24.	97	-	-
1999/00	25th	349	-	-	-	-	29	42	7th	307	-	-
2000/01	28.	263	-	-	-	-	36.	37	9.	226	-	-
2001/02	26th	318	-	-	-	-	-	-	5.	318	-	-
2002/03	16.	517	-	-	-	-	31.	44	3.	473	-	-
2003/04	10.	727	-	-	-	-	21st	97	1.	630	-	-
2004/05	14th	485	-	-	-	-	21st	77	2.	408	-	-
2005/06	14th	567	-	-	35.	18th	13.	169	14th	198	4th	182
2006/07	34.	271	-	-	-	-	18th	79	26th	86	8th.	106
2007/08	15th	520	29	66	53.	3	20th	86	17th	159	5.	206
2008/09	123.	14th	-	-	-	-	49.	6th	59.	8th	-	-
2009/10	127.	11	-	-	-	-	-	-	50.	11	-	-
2011/12	113.	18th	-	-	-	-	-	-	42.	18th	-	-

World Cup victories

Schönfelder achieved 22 podium places, including 5 wins:

date	place	country	discipline
February 6, 2000	Todtnau	Germany	slalom
January 20, 2002	Kitzbühel	Austria	slalom
November 24, 2002	Park City	United States	slalom
March 8, 2003	Shigakogen	Japan	slalom
February 8, 2004	Adelboden	Switzerland	slalom

European Cup

• 1999/2000 season : 3rd giant slalom ranking
• 7 podium places

Junior World Championships

• Voss 1995 : 11th slalom, 19th giant slalom, 32nd descent
• Hoch-Ybrig 1996 : 1st giant slalom, 1st combination, 2nd slalom, 12th descent, 12th Super-G

More Achievements

• 2-time Austrian champion (combination 1996 , Super-G 2008 )
• 4-time Austrian Youth Champion (Slalom Youth I 1994, Combination Youth II 1995, Giant Slalom and Combination Youth II 1996)
• 1 win in the Nor-Am Cup (Slalom in Loveland on November 16, 2002)
• 12 victories in FIS races

Awards

• 2004 Carinthian Sportsman of the Year
• 2006 Gold Medal of the State of Carinthia

literature

• Austrian Ski Association (Ed.): Austrian Ski Stars from A – Z. Ablinger & Garber, Hall in Tirol 2008, ISBN 978-3-9502285-7-1 , pp. 392-394.
• Landesschiverband and Kleine Zeitung (ed.): From Großglockner to Klammer-Stich - 100 years of skiing in Carinthia . Portrait of Rainer Schönfelder, Carinthia Verlag 2007, ISBN 978-3-85378-622-2 , pp. 83-86.

Web links

Commons : Rainer Schönfelder  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Website by Rainer Schönfelder
• Rainer Schönfelder in the database of the International Ski Association (English)
• Rainer Schönfelder in the database of Ski-DB (English)
• Rainer Schönfelder in the database of Sports-Reference (English; archived from the original )
• Portrait and news of Rainer Schönfelder on skiinfo.de
• Rainer Schoenfelder in the Internet Movie Database (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Charts AT
2. ↑ Rainer Schönfelder won medals at the Austrian school championships. (No longer available online.) Austrian Ski Association , archived from the original on October 29, 2013 ; Retrieved October 5, 2011 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
3. ↑ Rainer Schönfelder won medals at Austrian Youth Championships. (No longer available online.) Austrian Ski Association , archived from the original on October 29, 2013 ; Retrieved October 5, 2011 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
4. ↑ Slalom ends Beaver Creek Weekend: Schönfelder wants his second win of the season. news.at, December 3, 2005, accessed on March 16, 2015 . 
5. ↑ Gedopter Schönfelder got away with a warning. skialpin.ch, May 11, 2004, accessed on March 16, 2015 . 
6. ↑ The season for Schönfelder is over: "My body tells me: Until here and no further ..." (No longer available online.) Skiinfo.de, January 8, 2009, archived from the original on December 7, 2011 ; Retrieved October 5, 2011 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
7. ↑ Schönfelder: Back to the Ski World Cup with extra shifts. Kleine Zeitung , August 5, 2009, archived from the original on September 15, 2014 ; Retrieved October 5, 2011 . 
8. ↑ Schönfelder undergoes knee surgery. derStandard.at , December 5, 2009, accessed October 5, 2011 . 
9. ^ Rainer Schönfelder ends season prematurely: Missed Olympic qualification. (No longer available online.) Skiinfo.de, January 23, 2010, archived from the original on December 7, 2011 ; Retrieved October 5, 2011 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
10. ↑ Schönfelder has to take a six-month break: a cruciate ligament tear requires knee surgery (No longer available online.) Skiinfo.de, February 2, 2010, archived from the original on December 7, 2011 ; Retrieved October 5, 2011 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
11. ↑ Media Update 2/2011. (PDF, 228 kB) Rainer Schönfelder's website, May 20, 2011, accessed on October 5, 2011 . 
12. ↑ Rainer Schönfelder: Sochi is his goal. Kleine Zeitung , October 16, 2013, accessed on May 5, 2020 . 
13. ^ "Dancing Star" Schönfelder ends skiing career. Salzburger Nachrichten , October 27, 2013, accessed on October 27, 2013 . 
14. ↑ Schönfelder said goodbye in a 70s outfit. nachricht.at, October 27, 2013, accessed on October 27, 2013 . 
15. ↑ Schifoan and Popmusic at www.austrian-charts.at, accessed on October 5, 2011.
16. ↑ Rainer Schönfelder in the Internet Movie Database , accessed on October 5, 2011.
17. ↑ Schönfelder-Soap: TV documentary accompanies comeback. (No longer available online.) Skiinfo.de, August 11, 2011, formerly in the original ; Retrieved October 5, 2011 .  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.    
18. ↑ Skistar sets up ethics fund. nachricht.at, March 5, 2013, accessed on October 27, 2013 . 
19. ↑ Closure of Alpin Global Ethic. schiketanz.at, June 30, 2015, accessed on January 21, 2015 . 
20. ↑ Neo-Hoteliers - Maier and Schönfelder opened their hotel