Highlighting the Memorable Moments of Alpine Skiing at the 1964 Olympic Winter Games in Innsbruck.
Following Innsbruck's unsuccessful bid to host the 1960 Winter Games, the Mayor of the capital of Tirol submitted a further bid to host the Games in 1964. For the first time, at the 56th IOC Session in Munich in 1959, the International Federations attended the candidate city presentations and provided their input on the selection process. Innsbruck emerged victorious with 49 votes, surpassing Calgary (Canada) with 9 votes, while Lahti (Finland) failed to secure any votes.
The IX Olympic Winter Games were held in Innsbruck, Austria, from January 29 to February 9, 1964.
The Innsbruck 1964 Winter Games saw 1,091 participants (892 men and 199 women) from 36 countries (NOCs) compete across six sports and 34 individual events.
Adolf Schärf, the President of Austria, officially inaugurated the 9th Olympic Winter Games on January 29, 1964. Bobsledder Paul Aste swore the Olympic Oath, and the Alpine skier, Joseph Rieder, lit the Olympic Flame.
The Alpine Skiing events at the 1964 Winter Games in Innsbruck took place in Axamer Lizum, except for the Men's Downhill race, which was held in Patscherkofel.
Within a few weeks of starting their work, the organizing committee realized that a significant portion of the plans outlined in the application from the city of Innsbruck could not be implemented.
At the end of May 1960, the organizing committee and the representatives of the Austrian Ski Association were faced with the responsible task of submitting proposals for the following race courses in the shortest possible time: Women's Downhill, Women's Slalom, Men's Slalom, Women's Giant Slalom, Men's Giant Slalom, and a Men's reserve Downhill course. The Men's Downhill course had already been fixed in Patscherkofel.
The development of new Alpine Ski competition courses attracted attention from all skiing communities in Innsbruck and the Tyrol region.
The extensive construction of alpine ski competition venues also meant opening a new ski area near the city. Mountaineer and co-founder of the Austrian Mountain Rescue Service, Professor Wastl Mariner, has actively promoted the Axamer Lizum as the primary venue for the Alpine competitions for several years. Another group relied on a report by the mountaineer Matthias (Hias) Rebitsch and recommended the development of the so-called Viggartal, an area south of the Patscherkofel. The Secretary General of the Organizing Committee, Professor Friedl Wolfgang, who was also Chairman of the FIS Downhill Slalom Committee, and the ÖSV experts, engineer Hubert Spieß and Professor Wastl Mariner, examined both possible areas with the help of an army helicopter. On July 2, 1960, the Secretary-General was able to submit a clear report to the Sports Committee, according to which the Axamer Lizum was proposed for development and the construction of reserve routes at higher altitudes could be dispensed with. The Sports Committee unanimously decided in its fourth meeting on July 2, 1960, to designate the Axamer Lizum as the main competition venue for Alpine Skiing. All ski clubs in the Innsbruck-Land area and the experts officially delegated by the Austrian Ski Association to the board and committees of the Organizing Committee of the IX Olympic Winter Games 1964 unanimously voted in favor of choosing the Hoadl area.
To finance the development, the "Axamer Lizum Aufschließungs-AG" was founded on March 18, 1961, with its headquarters in Innsbruck. The shareholders of this joint-stock company were the Republic of Austria, the state of Tyrol, the city of Innsbruck, and the municipalities of Götzens, Birgitz, Axams, and Grinzens. The company aimed to develop the Axamer Lizum and surrounding areas for winter sports.
The determination of the competition venues for the Men's Downhill race on the Patscherkofel and the other competitions, including a reserve course for the men's downhill race on the Axamer Lizum, has proven to be extremely useful in practice.
The lack of snow threatened the Innsbruck Winter Games, prompting the Austrian army to rush to the rescue. They carved out 20,000 ice blocks from the glaciers and transported them down to the luge and bobsleigh tracks. They also carried 40,000 cubic meters of snow to the Alpine skiing slopes and left 20,000 cubic meters of spare snow as a backup.
Thanks to the soldiers' efforts, the unseasonal warmth did not cause any major issues, and the Games proceeded as scheduled. The 1964 Winter Games were a major success overall. Global interest in the Winter Games continued to grow, leading television companies to offer increasingly higher payments for broadcasting rights. The IOC President, Avery Brundage, praised the city of Innsbruck for the flawless running of the event.
The Goitschel sisters, Christine and Marielle from Val-d’Isère, competed in the women’s Olympic Slalom at Innsbruck 1964, held on February 1 at Axamer Lizum, with Marielle kicking off the competition. Producing an explosive run on the 51-gate course, eighteen-year-old Marielle Goitschel stopped the clock in 43.09, a time that would go unbeaten, with sister Christine, who went out 14th, the only other skier to dip below the 44-second mark with a time of 43.85.
In the second run, it was Christine’s turn to outpace the field, negotiating the 56-gate course a second and a half faster than Marielle to claim the gold and complete the very first one-two by sisters in Winter Games history. Jean Saubert from the USA took the third spot on the podium.
Two days later, Marielle got her revenge by finishing ahead of her older sister in the Giant Slalom. In the one-run race, Christine clocked a time of 1:53.11, which was later matched by Jean Saubert. Both were still leading when Marielle took her turn, starting in the 14th position. She raced down the 56-gate course in 1:52.24, snatching the title away from her sister and Saubert. This remarkable victory completed a unique double for the French siblings, a feat that had never been achieved in the history of the Winter Games.
When asked to name her highlight of the Innsbruck Games, Marielle replied without a moment’s hesitation: “When Christine won the slalom and I came second. Even when I won the giant, I didn’t get as excited" Christine added: “It was unique! It was the first time! They were the most wonderful two or three minutes of our lives. After that, it doesn’t belong to you anymore”.
Austria swept the Women's Downhill podium with Christl Haas (gold), Edith Zimmermann (silver), and Waltraud J. "Traudl" Hecher (bronze).
Christl Haas became a national hero at the age of twenty when she won the gold medal in the Downhill event at the 1964 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck. This victory turned her into an instant superstar in her home country.
Austrian Josef "Pepi" Stiegler was the only double medallist in Men’s Alpine Skiing at the Innsbruck 1964 Winter Games. Starting with bib 1 in the Giant Slalom, Stiegler posted a time of 1:48.05, one that ultimately proved good enough for a bronze medal. Only France’s François Bonlieu and fellow Austrian Karl Schranz went faster, taking gold and silver respectively.
Six days later Stiegler won gold in the Slalom beating USA teammates William “Billy” Kidd and Jimmy Heuga.
Local hero Egon Zimmermann, from Lech Am Arlberg, thrilled the home fans by winning the gold medal in a Downhill held in front of a loud and enthusiastic home crowd on the Patscherkofel in Igls on the penultimate day of January.
Zimmermann, with bib number 7, hurled himself through the start gate and into a thrilling and perfectly executed run that ended with him crossing the finish line with a winning time of 2:18.16. France’s Léo Lacroix and Germany’s Wolfgang Bartels rounded out the podium in second and third place respectively.
Tragedy struck at the Innsbruck 1964 Winter Games. On January 25, during a training run for the Men’s Downhill event at Patscherkofel, 19-year-old Ross Milne from Australia lost control and veered off the ice-slick course crashing against a tree at 60 miles per hour. Subsequently, he passed away due to a head injury at the hospital.
Alpine skiing was officially timed for the first time to within one-hundredth of a second.
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