GS IN FIGURES
On the 6th of January 1990, the German Dieter Thoma wins the 38th Four Hills Tournament. 24 hours later the Schlierenzauer-family’s offspring is born. Gregor, 52 centimeters tall and weighing 3.43 kilograms at birth, got into ski jumping via playing football, which he starts at the age of 9. At the age of 14, he takes his place next to Bernadette Schild, Tina Weirather and Mario Innauer at the Stamser elite secondary school for ski professionals. In 2006, Gregor’s athletic career begins to take shape with an early breakthrough.
Gregor also achieves a record with a total 2,083 points from 27 jumps and thus gains the overall victory in the World Cup 08/09. In the following season, the still 19-year-old celebrates his 26th World Cup victory on 19 December 2009 in Engelberg, crowning him the Austrian record holder.
The day before his 22nd birthday Gregor Schlierenzauer triumphs for the first time at the Four Hills Tournament. On the 4th of February 2012, he outclasses Adam Malysz in the all-time best leaderboard; the victory in Val di Fiemme is Gregor's 40th World Cup win.
At the beginning of the season 2015/16, after all these years at the top, Gregor runs out of steam. In January 2016, Gregor decides not to participate in the Ski Flying World Championships at the Kulm and to take a break from the World Cup for an indefinite period. In March 2016, he was injured whilst being on an alpine skiing trip in Canada. The diagnosis: a cruciate ligament rupture. Whether he will ever be able to ski again is, at this moment, on a knife’s edge.
Gregor begins to reflect. He is asking himself the question of meaning.
And decides: Yes, it was totally worth to have gone this path and I will carry on doing what I love.
After this challenging time, he announces his return for mid-January 2017, as part of the competitions in Wisła. Gregor suffers a setback: He falls at 206m while ski flying in Oberstdorf and the season seems over after only 4 weeks. However, Gregor continues to work consistently and makes it back into the team for the World Cup in Lahti. Moreover, he wins the bronze medal with the team, meaning he has won a medal at every major event since.
Gregor has realized that living a fulfilling life, means enjoying and accepting both, the good times and the more challenging days.
Today, he knows that overcoming the challenging days is one of his greatest victories, and that they set change in motion.