Career

Born in Flachau, Austria, Maier did not initially enjoy much success in skiing. At the Schladming ski academy, the 15-year old was sent home and told he wouldn’t make it because of his slight build. He returned home to his father’s ski school in Flachau and took up work as a bricklayer.

Putting that behind him, he entered the national ski championships in 1994 at the age of 21 and convincingly outstripped the rest of the field. Two years later he began his international career and landed a spot on the Austrian team. In 1997 he won his first World Cup event - a super-G race in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. He quickly established himself as an explosive and dynamic skier willing to take risks.

Since then he has dominated the sport, winning the gold medal in the giant-slalom and super-G at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano. In the same year he won the super-G World Cup and the overall World Cup. He went on to the win the overall World Cup in 2000 and 2001.

However, his career seemed over after a near-fatal motorbike accident in August 2001. Doctors were close to amputating his leg, but instead Maier underwent massive reconstructive surgery. Many thought his career was over, and he sat out the 2001-2002 season and missed the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. While many had counted him out for good, he came back to win the 2003-2004 super-G title, in a feat widely seen as one of the great sports comebacks in history.

Achievements