Videos.OJ 2022: Triple gold medal for King Killy, star of Grenoble Games in 1968

Birth of a star

Rien ne prédestinait le futur triple champion olympique à devenir skieur de haut niveau. Né à Saint-Cloud le 30 août 1943, c’est en 1946, à peine âgé de 3 ans, qu’il arrive avec sa famille à Val-d’Isère où son père, un ancien pilote de chasse de la Royal Air Force, tient un hôtel, et qu’il chausse sa première paire de skis.

Achieved sportsman, at 16, he was spotted as hope by the Federation then selected by Honoré Bonnet to evolve in the French team.On December 15, 1961, the Killy star illuminated the ski planet for the first time.Then aged 18, the young champion inaugurates during the giant test his prestigious and unique list of list in major international races.

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His victory in 1964, in the prestigious Kandahar giant slalom test, gave him great hopes for the Innsbruck Olympics, which took place that year.However, he misses his first Olympic meeting, returned empty-handed.Will follow exceptional seasons in 1965 and 1966, punctuated by two titles of world champion in Portillo.The year 1967 will be that of undivided supremacy: the one that will later be called King Killy, wins the general classification of first edition of the World Cup with twelve victories in fifteen races, as well as the descent globes, giantand slalom.

1968, the year of the coronation in Grenoble

In 1968, France welcomed the Winter Olympics for the second time in its history in Grenoble.The French champions and champions shine, winning a harvest of medals.

Among men, Killy wins the Grand Chelem Olympic and enters the history of sport by winning three gold medals in the three disciplines of alpine skiing, the descent, the slalom and the giant.

The French starts his harvest with the descent test, the Reine test, on February 9, 1968.He is ahead of his compatriot Guy Périllat with eight small hundredths.A victory that releases him.On February 12, 1968, after a perfect first round, he once again won in giant slalom two seconds in advance.Finally, in an intense fog, in Chamrousse, on February 17, Karl Schranz won ahead of Jean Claude Killy, but the Austrian is disqualified a few hours later for missing a door.This slalom which gives the Val-d'Isère champion its third gold medal will remain in history as one of the biggest controversies in the history of skiing in the Olympic Games.

King Killy, triple Olympic champion, equal to the hat.Since then, it's the only French skier to have such a record.Rewarded for his exploits in Grenoble, with Marielle Goitschel and Annie Famose (silver medal in giant slalom and bronze in slalom) he received in 1968 the Legion of Honor from the hands of General de Gaulle.Since then, it's the only French skier to have such a record.

World star, business manager and co -president of the Albertville Olympic Games

And like the Savoyard champion, on the evening of her third medal, feeling that he is at the top of his career, he makes the decision to stop the competition and thus put an end to his first life.Its notoriety is immense and propels it to the rank of world star.He meets his mentor Mark McCormack and became one of the first sportsmen to sell his image for the promotion of major world brands.From 1968 to 1981, he will also be a car pilot, participating in particular in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, film player and finally business manager of his own ski clothing brand.