Ulrike Maier's grave in Rauris, Austria |
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| Disciplines | Downhill, Super-G, Giant slalom, Slalom, Combined |
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| Born | October 22, 1967 Rauris, Austria |
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| Died | January 29, 1994 (aged 26) Murnau, Germany |
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| World Cup debut | December 9, 1984 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Olympics | |||||||||||||||||||
| Teams | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||
| World Championships | |||||||||||||||||||
| Teams | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Medals | 3 (2 gold) | ||||||||||||||||||
| World Cup | |||||||||||||||||||
| Wins | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Podiums | 21 | ||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Ulrike Maier (22 October 1967 – 29 January 1994) was an Austrian alpine ski racer, two-time Super-G World Alpine Ski Champion.
Born in Rauris, Maier won the Super-G gold medal at the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships in both 1989 and 1991. She also took home the giant slalom silver medal in the 1991 event. She recorded 5 World Cup victories (2 Super-G, 3 Giant Slalom) and 21 podiums in her career.
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On 29 January 1994 during a World Cup downhill race in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, Maier crashed while skiing at 120 km/h (75 mph) down the slope and broke her neck.[1] She died of her injuries shortly after being evacuated to the hospital in nearby Murnau, Germany, at age 26. She had thought to retire at the end of the 1993-1994 season. However, she was reconsidering her decision in the days before the fateful downhill, planning to continue until 1995 World Championships in Spain.
Initially it was claimed that her death was caused by hitting a wooden timing post. Based on that claim, Maier's fiance Hubert Schweighhofer criticised the organizers of the race and filed suit against them.[2] However, several months later the court found that Maier actually did not hit the timing post with her head but probably broke her neck by crashing into a pile of snow on the border of the race course.[3] The court did not find any negligence from the organizers and dismissed the suit.
Unlike most other deadly skiing accidents, her fatal crash happened during a race which was broadcast live on TV.
Maier was survived by her daughter and was buried in her home village of Rauris, Austria.
5 total: 3 Giant Slalom, 2 Super-G
| Date | Location | Race |
|---|---|---|
| 28 November 1992 | Park City | Giant Slalom |
| 13 December 1992 | Vail | Super-G |
| 16 January 1993 | Cortina d'Ampezzo | Super-G |
| 27 November 1993 | Santa Caterina | Giant Slalom |
| 21 January 1994 | Maribor | Giant Slalom |
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| Awards | ||
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| Preceded by Sigrid Wolf |
Austrian Sportswoman of the year 1989 |
Succeeded by Petra Kronberger |