Quick Facts
TaurusBiography
Patrick Ortlieb (born 20 May 1967) is a former World Cup alpine ski racer and Olympic gold medalist from Austria. A specialist in the speed events, he was also a world champion in the downhill event.
Born in Bregenz in Vorarlberg, Ortlieb started skiing early at the age of three. He won the downhill event at the 1992 Winter Olympics in France, gathered twenty World Cup podiums (sixty top tens), and was World Champion in 1996 in downhill. At the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, he finished fourth in the downhill at Kvitfjell. A month earlier, he won the famed downhill on the Hahnenkamm in Kitzbühel, Austria.
Five years later in January 1999, Ortlieb's racing career ended at age 31 after a serious crash during a practice run on the same slope at Kitzbühel. He suffered a compound fracture of the right femur and a badly dislocated and slightly fractured right hip after losing control and crashing into the safety nets at the Hausbergkante (mountain house corner). Later in the year, he was elected to the National Council of Austria for the Freedom Party of Austria, where he stayed for three years. He currently runs a four-star hotel, named Hotel Montana, in Lech am Arlberg in Vorarlberg.
World Cup results
Race podiums
- 4 wins – (3 DH, 1 SG)
- 20 podiums – (18 DH, 2 SG)
| Season | Date | Location | Discipline | Place |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | 10 Dec 1988 | Val Gardena, Italy | Downhill | 2nd |
| 1991 | 16 Mar 1991 | Lake Louise, Canada | Downhill | 3rd |
| 1992 | 11 Jan 1992 | Garmisch, Germany | Downhill | 2nd |
| 18 Jan 1992 | Kitzbühel, Austria | Downhill | 3rd | |
| 14 Mar 1992 | Aspen, USA | Downhill | 3rd | |
| 1993 | 11 Dec 1992 | Val Gardena, Italy | Downhill | 3rd |
| 23 Jan 1993 | Veysonnaz, Switzerland | Downhill | 2nd | |
| 28 Feb 1993 | Whistler, Canada | Super-G | 3rd | |
| 1994 | 18 Dec 1993 | Val Gardena, Italy | Downhill | 1st |
| 15 Jan 1994 | Kitzbühel, Austria | Downhill | 1st | |
| 15 Mar 1994 | Vail, USA | Downhill | 3rd | |
| 1995 | 11 Dec 1994 | Tignes, France | Super-G | 1st |
| 17 Dec 1994 | Val d'Isère, France | Downhill | 2nd | |
| 13 Jan 1995 | Kitzbühel, Austria | Downhill | 2nd | |
| 25 Feb 1995 | Whistler, Canada | Downhill | 3rd | |
| 11 Mar 1995 | Kvitfjell, Norway | Downhill | 3rd | |
| 1996 | 1 Dec 1995 | Vail, USA | Downhill | 3rd |
| 16 Dec 1995 | Val Gardena, Italy | Downhill | 1st | |
| 20 Jan 1996 | Veysonnaz, Switzerland | Downhill | 2nd | |
| 1997 | 15 Dec 1996 | Val d'Isère, France | Downhill | 3rd |
Season standings
| Season | Age | Overall | Slalom | Giant Slalom | Super G | Downhill | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | 21 | 30 | – | – | – | 12 | — |
| 1990 | 22 | 43 | – | – | – | 17 | 14 |
| 1991 | 23 | 23 | – | – | 26 | 6 | — |
| 1992 | 24 | 10 | – | – | 18 | 4 | 18 |
| 1993 | 25 | 7 | – | – | 7 | 7 | 6 |
| 1994 | 26 | 12 | – | – | 21 | 3 | — |
| 1995 | 27 | 11 | – | – | 9 | 3 | — |
| 1996 | 28 | 20 | – | – | 27 | 3 | — |
| 1997 | 29 | 33 | – | – | 16 | 14 | — |
| 1998 | 30 | 62 | – | – | 32 | 27 | — |
| 1999 | 31 | 82 | – | – | – | 35 | — |
World Championship results
| Year | Age | Slalom | Giant Slalom | Super G | Downhill | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 23 | — | — | — | 7 | — |
| 1993 | 25 | — | — | 8 | — | |
| 1996 | 28 | — | — | — | 1 | — |
| 1997 | 29 | — | — | — | 8 | — |
Olympic results
| Year | Age | Slalom | Giant Slalom | Super G | Downhill | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 24 | — | — | 18 | 1 | — |
| 1994 | 26 | — | — | — | 4 | — |