Hanni Wenzel

Who is Hanni Wenzel?

Hannelore Wenzel is a former alpine ski racer from Liechtenstein, an Olympic, World Cup, and world champion. She won the country's first Olympic medal at the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria.

Born in Straubing, West Germany, Wenzel moved to Liechtenstein at an early age. After she and her younger brother Andreas had success in ski racing - Hanni won the gold medal in slalom and silver in the combined at the 1974 World Championships - the family was granted Liechtenstein citizenship. At the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, she won the country's first Olympic medal, a bronze in the slalom at Axamer Lizum, and also picked up another world championship medal in the combined.

After winning the World Cup overall title in 1978, Wenzel's best year came in 1980. At the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, she won gold medals in the slalom and giant slalom, and just missed out on a sweep by taking the silver in the downhill at Whiteface Mountain. She also easily won the world championship gold medal in the combined event, its final edition as a "paper race" and her fourth world championship medal in that event.