Maria Riesch is an alpine skiing athlete competing at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics for Germany.
One of the tallest skiers on the Alpine circuit, Maria Riesch is also one of the most versatile. During her career, she has World Cup victories in four of the five Alpine disciplines (all but giant slalom). She will be one of the favorites in two events at Whistler Creekside, super-combined and slalom, and could contend in all five. She hopes to become the first German to win an Olympic gold medal
Riesch hails from the Bavarian mountain town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, the host of the 1936 Winter Olympics. Along with father Siegfried, mother Monika, older brother Jan and younger sister Susanna (a slalom specialist on the German team), Maria and the Riesch clan shared a love for skiing. She first strapped on a pair of skis at the age of three and joined her first club two years later. Talent and a strong work ethic helped her reach higher levels by the age of 16.
Even though they compete against each other for the top prizes in their sport (they finished 1-2 in the 2008-09 overall World Cup standings), Riesch and Lindsey Vonn have formed a very close bond over the years. The two skiers met while competing at the Junior World Championships in Quebec, Canada in 2000 and hit it off almost immediately. According to Der Tagesspeigel, Vonn liked Riesch's easy-going and natural style, while Riesch admired Vonn for her honesty and forthrightness. On the slopes, each skier has been known to celebrate the other's victories with as much gusto as her own. Off the slopes, they have enjoyed many a shopping trip together and have spent quality time during the holidays, as well. Christmas in Garmisch has become an annual celebration in recent years, and, this past spring, Vonn and her husband invited Riesch to join them in sunny Mexico. In 2004, during Riesch's only trip to visit her friend in the States, they took in a Chicago Cubs game and went shopping at the Mall of America in Minnesota.
Although Riesch has been competing on the World Cup circuit since her debut in February 2001, when she finished 20th in the super-G in her hometown, the Vancouver Games will be her first Olympics. Riesch missed 11 months of competition—including the 2006 Torino Games—after sustaining torn ligaments in her left knee during a second-run fall in the giant slalom at Aspen in December 2005.
During the 2008-09 season, Riesch ran off four consecutive victories in slalom over a six-week period and headed into the World Championships in Val d'Isere, France, as the prohibitive favorite in the event. However, the Worlds started out in nightmare fashion, as she injured her back and knee in a crash on her first downhill training run. She gutted out top-10 finishes in three events before winning her marquis event on the final day. After the race, she credited her teammate, surprise giant slalom champion Kathrin Hoelzl, for taking some of the pressure off her shoulders.
In 2009, Riesch was chosen by skiing outfitter Lange as its lead cover girl. Riesch became the third consecutive skier for the Lange Girl position, following Americans Julia Mancuso (2007) and Resi Stiegler (2008). Photo and video promotions featured the long-legged German posing in the company's sky-blue ski boots and fashionable clothing.
One of the tallest skiers on the Alpine circuit, Maria Riesch is also one of the most versatile. During her career, she has World Cup victories in four of the five Alpine disciplines (all but giant slalom). She will be one of the favorites in two events at Whistler Creekside, super-combined and slalom, and could contend in all five. She hopes to become the first German to win an Olympic gold medal
Maria Riesch Maria Riesch Maria Riesch Maria Riesch Lindsey Vonn and Maria Riesch Maria Riesch Pictures
in Alpine skiing since Hilde Gerg won the slalom in 1998.Riesch hails from the Bavarian mountain town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, the host of the 1936 Winter Olympics. Along with father Siegfried, mother Monika, older brother Jan and younger sister Susanna (a slalom specialist on the German team), Maria and the Riesch clan shared a love for skiing. She first strapped on a pair of skis at the age of three and joined her first club two years later. Talent and a strong work ethic helped her reach higher levels by the age of 16.
Even though they compete against each other for the top prizes in their sport (they finished 1-2 in the 2008-09 overall World Cup standings), Riesch and Lindsey Vonn have formed a very close bond over the years. The two skiers met while competing at the Junior World Championships in Quebec, Canada in 2000 and hit it off almost immediately. According to Der Tagesspeigel, Vonn liked Riesch's easy-going and natural style, while Riesch admired Vonn for her honesty and forthrightness. On the slopes, each skier has been known to celebrate the other's victories with as much gusto as her own. Off the slopes, they have enjoyed many a shopping trip together and have spent quality time during the holidays, as well. Christmas in Garmisch has become an annual celebration in recent years, and, this past spring, Vonn and her husband invited Riesch to join them in sunny Mexico. In 2004, during Riesch's only trip to visit her friend in the States, they took in a Chicago Cubs game and went shopping at the Mall of America in Minnesota.
Although Riesch has been competing on the World Cup circuit since her debut in February 2001, when she finished 20th in the super-G in her hometown, the Vancouver Games will be her first Olympics. Riesch missed 11 months of competition—including the 2006 Torino Games—after sustaining torn ligaments in her left knee during a second-run fall in the giant slalom at Aspen in December 2005.
During the 2008-09 season, Riesch ran off four consecutive victories in slalom over a six-week period and headed into the World Championships in Val d'Isere, France, as the prohibitive favorite in the event. However, the Worlds started out in nightmare fashion, as she injured her back and knee in a crash on her first downhill training run. She gutted out top-10 finishes in three events before winning her marquis event on the final day. After the race, she credited her teammate, surprise giant slalom champion Kathrin Hoelzl, for taking some of the pressure off her shoulders.
In 2009, Riesch was chosen by skiing outfitter Lange as its lead cover girl. Riesch became the third consecutive skier for the Lange Girl position, following Americans Julia Mancuso (2007) and Resi Stiegler (2008). Photo and video promotions featured the long-legged German posing in the company's sky-blue ski boots and fashionable clothing.
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