European Cup fiftieth year. Invented by Patrick Lang

Slalom that will be held on November 25 in DavidIn Sweden, celebrations for the 50th anniversary of the European Cup will begin. It is better to specify: this year will start the fifty-first, but the FIS considers the real fifty years (1971/72 – 2021/21) and not the seasons, or rather the versions, which obviously span the calendar year, otherwise the calculations add, since 50 A name already written in the honor roll.

Thus, the continental circle will end at Soldeu – Tartar In Grandvalira, Andorra, March 14-20, 2022.

It will not be a release like all the others for several reasons. When a complex event like skating is half a century old, it means a lot. Especially if you go to research its origin and history.

In 1970, the North American circuit was born, the Nur-Am Cup, which was initially christened Can-Am.

Patrick LangHe asked himself, in his twenties, the son of Serge, the inventor of the World Cup: “If Americans did, why not bring that look to Europe as well?“

Serge Lange and Fabio Consci

Once upon a time, when there was still a lot of stuff to create, a few phone calls were enough to put together a small working group and write a project draft. also participated in it Fabio Consciwho was about to end his tenure at Vesey.

Serge organizes a meeting in Zurich and in an instant the project is ready! Intersport got its hand right away, thanks to an expansion that led it to sponsor the 72nd Summer Olympics in Munich.

Everything also became easier because in those years there was a kind of World Cup B. Races intended for less powerful athletes who lived in the waiting room of the extreme circuit or who had to grow technically.

Young Barrick Lang with Mark Hoedler, President of the Islamic Salvation Front from 1951 to 1998

Some of these competitions enjoyed greater prominence, rated as Fis-B, and even cup players took part when they had the chance.

The FIS Congress in Opatija in 1971 decreed the birth of the European Cup.

The first European Cup match was held in December in Les Menuires, France. Men’s slalom won by the French Jean-Noel Augert With a time of 1’06″ 67, ahead of Andre Bachlida (Natural French Polish) and us Eberhard Schmalzel.

The first edition won by Ilario PeguraryHe disappeared in the New Zealand tragedy at Ruapehu ten years later. The unforgettable Valtellina di Caspoggio was third in the downhill and second in the slalom and giant in the three specialized classifications offered.

The first “pink” race was held in Schladming, the well-known Austrian town that was suggested to be a little famous, as it was still a small town looking to expand. The French won the cup Fabian Sirat, A real phenomenon that proves itself at only 15 years old!

However, it was immediately understood that this project that was born above all to make the young grow up was also used by the strongest as a training ground. Especially in that first season that ends with the Sapporo Olympics. Come on, the tracks, race after race, became more and more difficult, and the gap in forces on the field remained very clear.

“The European Cup was about to give birth to a revolutionary scoring system – Patrick says. A kind of big scoreboard obtained from a certain number of points attributed to World Cup, European Cup and FIS races. Like, 100 worlds, 20 Europe, 1 fis. It was talked about in French sports salons.

From left, Perino Gross, Patrick Lange with his daughter Manuel and Jean-Claude Kelly

in front of a bottle of Beaujolais Inspired by this mechanism postulated by Lange, the new bicycle registration system was born years later. Meet him, the former director of the Tour de France Jean Marie Leblanc, who is also a journalist at Équipe, just like Serge!

Meanwhile, the project has reached ears Karl Fresner, one of the greatest technicians in Swiss ski history, then passed on to the Austrians at the end of the 1990s and again later as race director at the World Cup.

Karl Frischner

Only in 91, during one of the technical meetings of the FIS, in Telfas, it was proposed to change the attribution of degrees. A different path was chosen: 100 points to the winner instead of 25 and it indicates the top 30 instead of 10 or 15.

Frehsner also launched the idea of ​​Top 25 Finals from each discipline, but then in 1993 it was replaced by Gunther stones He is forced to abandon his plan to merge the European Cup and the World Cup into one scoreboard.

In the center is Patrick Lang with his father Serge (in the car) and on the left is Karl Frischner

But the European Cup continued on its way. Italy marked the first ten years.

The Pegorari Cup was followed in 73 by the Fausto Cup the rootsIn the year 75 Diego AmplatzIn the year 76 Bruno comfort herIn the year 78 Leonardo David Neil 80 Siegfried Kirschbaumer. Ten years later, it was Joseph’s turn pole In 1990, Michael Goeffler in 2006 and Ricardo in 2015 Twenty And in 2019 Simon Morburger. In the field of women, only two occupied it, and the first Azure to raise it to the sky was in the year 92 Lara Magoni The most recent was Lisa Magdalena Agrier in 2012. First, Corténez also won Elena Matos, but in 73 decided to run for San Marino, then from 1974 to 1976 for Iran, and finally asked the following year with Luxembourg.

Alcuni dei più grandi protagonist de Coppa sono passati da lì, Strolzl, Bill Johnson, Nierlich, Hermann Mayer, Raich, Reichelt, Jansrud, Hirscher and Pinturault. Kilde … o Wachter, Meissnitzer, Riesch, Görgl, Fenninger, Gut, Siebenhofer, Ortlieb …

In Andorra, they are preparing for a big party to celebrate their fiftieth anniversary. It will be a special moment!

All European Cup winners
For Italy, 10 titles and 2 titles

1971-1972 Ilario Pegurary E Fabian Sirat
1972-1973 Fausto Radissi E Martin Cotet
1973-1974 Christian Witt-Doering and Elena Matos*
1974-1975 Diego Amplatz and Dagmar Kuzmanova
1975-1976 Bruno Konfortola This is Gabi Hauser
1976-1977 Peter Bobangelov and Ursula Kunzite
1977-1978 Leonardo David and Christine Loeck
1978-1979 Garley Halsens and the daughter of Dahlum
1979-1980 Siegfried Kirschbaumer and Erica Jafrier
1980-1981 Ernst Riedlsperger e Diane Haight
1981-1982 Hubert Strolz e Sonja Stotz
1982-1983 Bill Johnson e Christine von Grünigen
1983-1984 Dietmar Kolbechler and Anita Wachter
1984-1985 Luc Gennolet and Karen Bauder
1985-1986 Rudolf Nerlich and Manuela Ruff
1986-1987 Helmut Mayere Christa Kinshofer
1987-1988 Conrad Walk and Petra Burnett
1988-1989 Stephan Eberharter e Sabine Ginther
1989-1990 Christian Poleg and Agneta Hjorth
1990-1991 Tobias Barnerssoi / Markus Eberle e Alexandra Meissnitzer
1991-1992 Marcel Soliger and Lara Magoni
1992-1993 Marcel Soliger and Christina Anderson
1993-1994 Patrick Staub e Melanie Torjeon
1994-1995 Andreas Scheffer Karin Kollerer
1995-1996 Hermann Mayer and Svetlana Gladyseva / Sylvian Berthoud
1996-1997 Stefan Eberharter and Mariana Salchinger
1997-1998 Benjamin Reich and Mariana Salchinger
1998-1999 Michael Walchhofer e Silvia Berger
1999-2000 Christoph Gruber et Selena Heriger
2000-2001 Ambrose Hoffmann et Lillian Comer
2001-2002 Martin Marinac e Maria Riesch
2002-2003 Norbert Holzknecht e Elisabeth Görgl
2003-2004 Matthias Lanzinger and Karen Placer
2004-2005 Kjetil Jansrud / Hannes Reichelt and Andrea Fischbacher
2005-2006 Michael Goeffler and Anna Wenger
2006-2007 Peter Stroeger and Anna Wenger
2007-2008 Marcel Hirscher e Lara Gott
2008-2009 Florian Schipper and Karen Huckle
2009-2010 Christian Spescha e Lena Dürr
2010-2011 Alexis Bentorault and Jessica DePauli
2011-2012 Florian Schipper E Lisa Magdalena Agerer
2012-2013 Alexander Amoud Keldeh and Ramona Seppenhofer
2013-2014 Thomas Tommler and Michelle Jessen
2014-2015 Riccardo Tonetti and Ricarda Hassan
2015-2016 Bjornar Nettland and Maren Skjöld
2016-2017 Jill Rollin and Christina Reiss-Johansson
2017-2018 Johannes Strolls and Nina Ortlieb
2018-2019 Simon Morberger H Elizabeth Reisinger
2019-2020 Atle Lie McGrath e Nadine Fest
2020-2021 Maximilian Lansteiner and Mart Monsen

Elena Matos*: The girl from Cortina in 1973 passed to San Marino, then from 74 to 76 races to Iran and in 76 to Luxembourg

50th European Cup