Hanni Wenzel : biography
Hannelore (Hanni) Wenzel (born December 14, 1956) is a former champion alpine ski racer from Liechtenstein. She won the country’s first Olympic medal at the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria.
Born in West Germany, Hanni moved to Liechtenstein at an early age. After she and her younger brother Andreas began to get successful in skiing – Hanni won the gold medal in slalom at the 1974 World Championships – the family was granted Liechtenstein citizenship. In 1976, she won the country’s first Olympic medal by taking a bronze in the giant slalom at Innsbruck.
After winning the 1978 World Cup overall title, Wenzel’s best year came in 1980. At the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, she won gold medals in the slalom and giant slalom, and just missed out on a sweep by taking the silver in the downhill. She also won the combined event in Lake Placid, although it had World Championship status, not Olympic status. At the same Olympics, her brother also won a silver medal, placing Liechtenstein high in the medal ranking of the games. In addition to her Olympic success, she won nine World Cup races in 1980 and captured the overall, giant slalom, and combined season titles. Her brother Andreas won the overall men’s title.
Hanni Wenzel retired following the 1984 season with two Olympic titles, four World titles, two overall World Cups, three discipline World Cups plus three combined titles, and 33 World Cup victories. (Through 1980, the Olympics were also the World Championships.)
World cup results
Season standings
| Season | Age | Overall | Slalom | GiantSlalom | Super G | Downhill | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 15 | 40 | — | 27 | notrun | — | notawarded |
| 1973 | 16 | 5 | 6 | 3 | 18 | ||
| 1974 | 17 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 16 | ||
| 1975 | 18 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 12 | ||
| 1976 | 19 | 9 | 9 | 13 | 16 | 6 | |
| 1977 | 20 | 5 | 5 | 8 | 11 | notawarded | |
| 1978 | 21 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 15 | ||
| 1979 | 22 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 10 | ||
| 1980 | 23 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | |
| 1981 | 24 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 2 | |
| 1982 | 25 | 19 | 9 | 14 | — | — | |
| 1983 | 26 | 2 | 4 | 5 | notawarded | — | 1 |
| 1984 | 27 | 2 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 4 |
Season titles
7 titles – (2 overall, 2 giant slalom, 1 slalom, 2 combined)
| Season | Discipline |
|---|---|
| 1974 | Giant Slalom |
| 1978 | Overall |
| Slalom | |
| 1980 | Overall |
| Giant Slalom | |
| Combined | |
| 1983 | Combined |
Individual races
- 33 wins
- 89 podiums
| Season | Date | Location | Discipline |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | 19 Dec 1973 | AUT}} Zell am See, Austria | Giant Slalom |
| 1975 | 21 Feb 1975 | JPN}} Naeba, Japan | Slalom |
| 14 Mar 1975 | USA}} Sun Valley, USA | Slalom | |
| 1977 | 19 Jan 1977 | AUT}} Schruns, Austria | Combined |
| 1978 | 15 Dec 1977 | ITA}} Madonna di Campiglio, Italy | Giant Slalom |
| 10 Jan 1978 | SUI}} Les Mosses, Switzerland | Giant Slalom | |
| 22 Jan 1978 | SLO}} Maribor, Slovenia | Slalom | |
| 24 Jan 1978 | Berchtesgaden, West Germany | Slalom | |
| 25 Jan 1978 | Slalom | ||
| 2 Mar 1978 | USA}} Stratton Mountain, USA | Giant Slalom | |
| 1979 | 12 Dec 1978 | ITA}} Piancavallo, Italy | Giant Slalom |
| 3 Feb 1979 | Pfronten, West Germany | Slalom | |
| 4 Feb 1979 | Combined | ||
| 8 Feb 1979 | SLO}} Maribor, Slovenia | Slalom | |
| 1980 | 8 Dec 1979 | Limone Piemonte, Italy | Giant Slalom |
| 14 Dec 1979 | Combined | ||
| 10 Jan 1980 | FRG}} Berchtesgaden, West Germany | Giant Slalom | |
| 16 Jan 1980 | SUI}} Arosa, Switzerland | Giant Slalom | |
| 21 Jan 1980 | Bad Gastein, Austria | Slalom | |
| Combined | |||
| 23 Jan 1980 | SLO}} Maribor, Slovenia | Slalom | |
| 26 Jan 1980 | FRA}} Saint-Gervais, France | Giant Slalom | |
| 1980 Winter Olympics | |||
| 25 Feb 1980 | USA}} Waterville Valley, USA | Giant Slalom | |
| 1981 | 27 Jan 1981 | FRA}} Les Gets, France | Combined |
| 8 Feb 1981 | FRG}} Zwiesel, West Germany | Combined | |
| 1982 | 12 Dec 1981 | ITA}} Piancavallo, Italy | Combined |
| 18 Mar 1982 | JPN}} Furano, Japan | Giant Slalom | |
| 1983 | 30 Jan 1983 | SUI}} Les Diablerets, Switzerland | Combined |
| 1984 | 21 Dec 1983 | Haus im Ennstal, Austria | Downhill |
| 22 Dec 1983 | Giant Slalom | ||
| 14 Jan 1984 | Bad Gastein, Austria | Downhill | |
| 15 Jan 1984 | Combined | ||
| 20 Mar 1984 | FRG}} Zwiesel, West Germany | Slalom |
Post-racing
Later, she married Austrian ski racer (and World Champion) Harti Weirather and started a marketing agency with him. Their daughter Tina Weirather is a World Junior Champion and currently competes in the World Cup but withdrew from the 2010 Olympics due to an injury. She finished second in the World Cup downhill standings for the 2012 season.
