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Ulrike Maier (22 October 1967 – 29 January 1994) was an Austrian alpine skier, two-time Super-G World Alpine Ski Champion.
Born in Rauris, Maier won the Super-G gold medal at the World Alpine Ski Championships in both 1989 and 1991. She also took home the giant slalom bronze medal in the 1991 event. She scored a total of 5 World Cup (2 Super-G, 3 Giant Slalom) race victories in her career.
On 29 January 1994 during a World Cup downhill race in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, Maier crashed while skiing at 120 km/h 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 planned to retire at the end of the 1993-1994 season.
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.
Maier was survived by her daughter and was buried in her home village of Rauris, Austria.
- ^ [1]. New York Times. 30 January 1994.
- ^ [2]. New York Times. 31 January 1994.
- ^ [3]. International Herald Tribune 25 November 1994.
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Preceded by Sigrid Wolf |
Austrian Sportswoman of the year 1989 |
Succeeded by Petra Kronberger |
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