Henri Oreiller

Henri Oreiller (December 5, 1925 – October 7, 1962) was a French alpine ski racer. He won two gold medals and a bronze medal in skiing at the 1948 Olympic Games, becoming the most successful athlete there.

He was born in Paris, the son of Léon Oreiller, of Italian origin, and Marguerite Favre, from Savoie. His parents lived in Paris and frequented Val d'Isère for holidays.

Nicknamed the "Parisian of Val d'Isère" or the "madman of downhill", he was the first Olympic downhill champion in 1948 at Saint-Moritz, with a record margin of 4 seconds over the runner-up. He also took the gold medal in the combined event, and the bronze medal in the special slalom.

Obsessed with speed, Oreiller retired from skiing in 1952 at age 26 to take up motor racing. Ten years later, he was killed on October 7, 1962, in a crash at the Linas-Montlhéry autodrome behind the wheel of a Ferrari. At his shrine at Val d'Isère, where he rests next to his wife, testimonies from around the world bear witness to his abilities.

Winter Olympics

• 1948 Winter Olympics at Saint-Moritz (Switzerland) :
  • Gold medal in Downhill.
  • Gold medal in Combined.
  • Bronze medal in Slalom.

Arlberg-Kandahar

• Best result: 2nd place in slalom 1947 a Mürren and 1950 a Mürren .

Others

• Winner of the Harriman Cup in Sun Valley in the U.S., in downhill, slalom, and combined.
• Champion of France in special slalom in 1947.

Motor racing

• Champion of France in "touring" category in 1959.
• Tour de France 1959, winner on points.
• Lyon-Carbonniere Rallye in 1960 and 1961.

Sources

This article incorporates information from the revision as of 2 Oct 2007 of the equivalent article on the French Wikipedia.