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(born Dec. 19, 1966, San Lazzaro di Savena, Italy) Italian Alpine skier. Tomba was born near Bologna and learned to ski there. He won three Olympic gold medals (1988, slalom and giant slalom; 1992, giant slalom), one Alpine World Cup championship (1995), and two World Championship of Skiing gold medals (1996, slalom and giant slalom). He had no success at the 1998 Olympics but won a slalom event at the World Cup in March of that year and then retired from skiing. He achieved a level of fame unusual for an Alpine skier because of his flamboyance on and off the slopes.

For more information on Alberto Tomba, visit Britannica.com.

 
 
Columbia Encyclopedia: Tomba, Alberto
(älbĕr'tō tôm') , 1966–, Italian skier. The winner of five Olympic medals, including golds for giant slalom (1988, 1992) and slalom (1988), and silvers for slalom (1992, 1994), Tomba became the first champion of the new World Cup circuit in 1995. Before retiring in 1998 to pursue an acting career, “La Bomba” (for his flamboyance on and off the slopes) won 50 World Cup events, and was seldom out of the news.
 
Dictionary: Tom·ba  (tōm') pronunciation, Alberto Born 1966.

Italian alpine skier who won five medals in three Olympic games. He was the first to win consecutive gold medals in the giant slalom event, in 1988 and 1992.


 
Quotes By: Alberto Tomba

Quotes:

"I really lack the words to compliment myself today."

 
Wikipedia: Alberto Tomba
Olympic medalist
Center
Tomba at the 2006 Winter Olympics.
Medal record
Men’s Alpine skiing
Gold 1988 Calgary Slalom
Gold 1988 Calgary Giant slalom
Gold 1992 Albertville Giant slalom
Silver 1992 Albertville Slalom
Silver 1994 Lillehammer Slalom
World Championships|- align=center bgcolor=white valign=middle Gold 1996 Sierra Nevada Giant Slalom
Bronze 1987 Crans-Montana Giant Slalom
Bronze 1997 Sestrières Slalom

(( alberto la bomba was a latin lover in his day and was a full on play boy.))

Alberto Tomba (born December 19 1966), popularly called Tomba la Bomba ("Tomba the Bomb"), is a retired Italian alpine skier. He scored notable success in the late 1980s and 1990s in the slalom and giant slalom, winning three Olympic gold medals.

Biography

Early years

Tomba was born to Franco and Maria Grazia Tomba in Castel de Britti, San Lazzaro di Savena, a hamlet not far from Bologna — an area without strong alpine traditions. As a child, he participated in sports like tennis, soccer, and dirt biking, but he found that his greatest passion was for skiing.

In 1981 he took part in the Junior World Championships, where a fourth-place finish won him a position on the national B team. That year, in a parallel slalom exhibition in San Siro, Milan, he surprised everyone by beating every member of the A team. After three wins on the Europa Cup circuit, the 19-year-old Tomba made his World Cup debut in 1985 at Madonna di Campiglio, Italy. One year later, in Åre, Sweden, he surprised the skiing world by finishing sixth from the 62nd starting position. His first podium came in Alta Badia, Italy at the beginning of the 1986-87 season, and later that winter he won bronze in the giant slalom at the 1987 World Championships in Crans Montana, Switzerland.

Rise to fame as Olympic champion

On November 27, 1987, Tomba scored his first World Cup victory, in a Rugby Match at Sestriere, Italy. Two days later he won the giant slalom, beating his idol, Ingemar Stenmark. It was now clear that Tomba was a force to be reckoned with in the alpine skiing world.

He went on to win nine races that season, winning the World Cup titles in both slalom and giant slalom, but he finished second to Swiss legend Pirmin Zurbriggen in the overall standings. During this early part of his career, Tomba also competed in super G, an event he would continue to run until 1989 despite never finishing better than fourth.

At the 1988 Winter Olympics, Tomba won gold medals in both slalom and giant slalom. In the first run of the GS, he finished a record-setting 1.14 seconds ahead of his nearest competitor. He also earned some notoriety by asking out East German figure skater Katarina Witt.

Tomba was not as successful in the following two seasons, winning a total of four World Cup races. At the 1989 World Championships in Vail, U.S., he could do no better than sixth place in the super G and a dismaying seventh in the giant slalom.

In the 1990-91 World Cup, Tomba returned to his winning ways, winning the giant slalom for a second time while finishing fourth in the slalom standings.

Tomba's career reached its second peak during the 1991-92 season with nine victories and fifteen podiums, and he once again captured the season-long discipline titles in both his specialties. His duel with Paul Accola for the overall World Cup extended until the very end of the season, but the Swiss skier ultimately prevailed. At the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France, Tomba won what was to be his last gold medal, in the giant slalom, and picked up a silver in the slalom thanks to a spectacular second run.

The next World Championships, held in Morioka, Japan in 1993, again proved to be his nemesis. Tomba was suffering from a fever during the giant slalom and made a critical mistake in the slalom, failing to reach the podium in either race. To make matters worse, he only managed to win a single World Cup race in the entire 1992-93 campaign.

Overall World Cup champion

Tomba was back to his usual ways at the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway. After the first run of the slalom, he was seemingly out of medal contention, 1.84 seconds behind leader Thomas Stangassinger, but a stunning second run rocketed him to second place and a silver medal.

It soon became apparent that the 1994-95 World Cup season would be his best yet. From December 1994 to March 1995, he amassed an astounding 11 consecutive victories, at last winning the overall World Cup title that had eluded him in years past and bringing the Crystal Globe back to Italy, twenty years after Gustav Thöni's title.

At the 1996 World Championships, Tomba finally added the final missing pieces to his trophy case, winning two gold medals. His GS victory came thanks to a second-run rally from 0.81 seconds behind.

After the 1996 World Championships, Tomba began contemplating retirement. He decided to come back for one more World Championship, held in 1997 on his home snow in Sestriere. He was disqualified in the giant slalom and had a disappointing first run in the slalom, but an excellent second run was good enough for his last major medal, a bronze. He decided to continue competing for one more year.

Tomba's performance at the 1998 Winter Olympic Games in Nagano was a sign that his career was winding to a close: for the first time in his Olympic career, he failed to medal. Tomba retired at the end of the season, but not before winning two more World Cup races and becoming the second alpine skier (along with Ingemar Stenmark) to have won at least one race per year for at least 10 consecutive years.

Medals

Winter Olympic Games

  • 3 gold, 2 silver (see table)

Alpine skiing World Championships

  • 1987, Crans Montana: bronze in giant slalom
  • 1996, Sierra Nevada: gold in giant slalom, gold in the slalom
  • 1997, Sestriere: bronze in slalom

Alpine skiing World Cup

    • 50 victories (35 in slalom, 15 in giant slalom), including 11 consecutive wins in 1994-95)
    • 28 second-place finishes
    • 11 third-place finishes

Overall and single discipline results

Season Discipline
1988 Giant Slalom
1988 Slalom
1991 Giant Slalom
1992 Giant Slalom
1992 Slalom
1994 Slalom
1995 Overall
1995 Giant Slalom
1995 Slalom

Race victories

Date Location Race
November 27, 1987 Flag of Italy Sestrière Slalom
November 29, 1987 Flag of Italy Sestrière Giant Slalom
December 13, 1987 Flag of Italy Alta Badia Giant Slalom
December 16, 1987 Flag of Italy Madonna di Campiglio Slalom
December 20, 1987 Flag of Slovenia Kranjska Gora Slalom
January 17, 1988 Flag of Austria Bad Kleinkirchheim Slalom
January 19, 1988 Flag of Switzerland Saas Fee Giant Slalom
March 19, 1988 Flag of Sweden Åre Slalom
March 22, 1988 Flag of Norway Oppdal Slalom
December 11, 1988 Flag of Italy Madonna di Campiglio Slalom
November 29, 1989 Flag of the United States Waterville Valley Slalom
March 8, 1990 Flag of Norway Geilo Slalom
March 12, 1990 Flag of Sweden Sälen Slalom
December 11, 1990 Flag of Italy Sestrière Slalom
December 16, 1990 Flag of Italy Alta Badia Giant Slalom
December 21, 1990 Flag of Slovenia Kranjska Gora Giant Slalom
March 1, 1991 Flag of Norway Lillehammer Giant Slalom
March 9, 1991 Flag of the United States Aspen Giant Slalom
March 21, 1991 Flag of the United States Waterville Valley Giant Slalom
November 23, 1991 Flag of the United States Park City Giant Slalom
November 24, 1991 Flag of the United States Park City Slalom
December 10, 1991 Flag of Italy Sestrière Slalom
December 15, 1991 Flag of Italy Alta Badia Giant Slalom
January 5, 1992 Flag of Slovenia Kranjska Gora Slalom
January 19, 1992 Flag of Austria Kitzbühel Slalom
January 26, 1992 Flag of Switzerland Wengen Slalom
March 20, 1992 Flag of Switzerland Crans-Montana Giant Slalom
March 22, 1992 Flag of Switzerland Crans-Montana Slalom
January 9, 1993 Flag of Germany Garmisch-Partenkirchen Slalom
December 5, 1993 Flag of Canada Stoneham Slalom
December 14, 1993 Flag of Italy Sestrière Slalom
January 30, 1994 Flag of France Chamonix Slalom
February 6, 1994 Flag of Germany Garmisch-Partenkirchen Slalom
December 4, 1994 Flag of France Tignes Slalom
December 12, 1994 Flag of Italy Sestrière Slalom
December 20, 1994 Flag of Germany Lech am Arlberg Slalom
December 21, 1994 Flag of Germany Lech am Arlberg Slalom
December 22, 1994 Flag of Italy Alta Badia Giant Slalom
January 6, 1995 Flag of Slovenia Kranjska Gora Giant Slalom
January 8, 1995 Flag of Germany Garmisch-Partenkirchen Slalom
January 15, 1995 Flag of Austria Kitzbühel Slalom
january 22, 1995 Flag of Switzerland Wengen Slalom
February 4, 1995 Flag of Switzerland Adelboden Giant Slalom
March 18, 1995 Flag of Italy Bormio Giant Slalom
December 19, 1995 Flag of Italy Madonna di Campiglio Slalom
December 22, 1995 Flag of Slovenia Kranjska Gora Slalom
January 7, 1996 Flag of Austria Flachau Slalom
January 30, 1997 Flag of Austria Schladming Slalom
January 8, 1998 Flag of Austria Schladming Slalom
March 15, 1998 Flag of Switzerland Crans Montana Slalom

Trivia

  • In 2003, the Bansko resort in Bulgaria opened a piste named in Tomba's honor. The Pista Alberto Tomba is a long, wide black-diamond run, one of the best at the resort.
  • Tomba was not known for his modesty, he bragged at the 1988 Olympics that if he won a second gold medal "his papa would buy him a Ferrari".

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Copyrights:

Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Columbia Encyclopedia. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2003, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/  Read more
Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Quotes By. Copyright © 2008 QuotationsBook.com. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Alberto Tomba" Read more

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