Deborah Compagnoni (Italian pronunciation: [ˈdɛːbora kompaɲˈɲoːni]; born 4 June 1970[1]) is an Italian former Alpine skier who won three gold medals at the 1992, 1994, and 1998 Winter Olympics.[2]
Compagnoni in March 2010 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 4 June 1970 Bormio, Italy | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation | Alpine skier | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 165 cm (5 ft 5 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Skiing career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Cup debut | 1986 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Retired | 1999 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Olympics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Medals | 4 (3 gold) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Championships | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Medals | 3 (3 gold) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Cup | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Seasons | 14 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wins | 16 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Podiums | 44 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Overall titles | 0 (4th 1998 & 1999) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Discipline titles | 1 (Gs 1997) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Biography
editDeborah Compagnoni was born in Bormio, northern Lombardy, and skied with the G.S. Forestale club.[2]
Compagnoni soon attracted attention for her great talent. Her career was always marked by major successes, but also by serious accidents.[3] After her first major victory, the World Junior title in giant slalom, and her first podium in World Cup, she broke her right knee in the Val d'Isère downhill. After surgery, she decided to stop competing in downhill races, where her talent could have permitted even greater successes than those she obtained in her still outstanding career.[2]
Compagnoni won her first race in the World Cup in 1992. She also won the gold medal at the Winter Olympics of the same year, again in the super-G; however, while racing the giant slalom one day later, she destroyed her left knee.[2]
In the following years, she left the speed disciplines (downhill and Super-G), confirming herself as one of the best giant slalom specialists. Her fragile knees hindered Compagnoni's practice activity, and limited the number of victories in the World Cup; however, she always arrived in her best shape for the major championships. In 1994, at the Lillehammer Olympics, she won the gold medal in the giant slalom, a feat she repeated four years later in Nagano. In 1998, she won also a silver medal in the Slalom, finishing second by only 0.06 seconds.[2]
Compagnoni won the World Championship in giant slalom in 1996; in the following year's edition, she repeated the victory, alongside winning with the slalom title, a feat never accomplished by any other Italian female skier. She won a total of 16 races in the Alpine Skiing World Cup (13 giant slalom, 2 super-G, and 1 slalom), plus a giant slalom World Cup in 1997.[2]
Deborah Compagnoni is considered the best Italian female skier of all time, the equal of famous male champions like Gustav Thöni and Alberto Tomba. The World Cup skiing track in her native Santa Caterina Valfurva has been named after her.[citation needed]
She is married to Alessandro Benetton, and they have three children: Agnese, Tobias, and Luce; they live in Ponzano Veneto, Italy.[4][5] They separated in 2021.[6] Her brother Jacopo Compagnoni, a fellow Alpine skier, died during an avalanche on Monte Sobretta on 16 December 2021, at the age of 40.[7]
World Cup results
editSeason titles
edit| Season | Discipline |
|---|---|
| 1997 | Giant slalom |
Season standings
edit| Season | Overall | Downhill | Super-G | Giant slalom | Slalom | Combined | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Place | Points | Place | Points | Place | Points | Place | Points | Place | Points | Place | Points | |||
| 1987/88 | 40. | 24 | 22. | 12 | 17. | 12 | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| 1988/89 | did not participate due to an injury | |||||||||||||
| 1989/90 | 52. | 19 | – | – | 22. | 9 | 24. | 10 | – | – | – | – | ||
| 1990/91 | 57. | 12 | – | – | – | – | 17. | 12 | – | – | – | – | ||
| 1991/92 | 11. | 590 | – | – | 15. | 126 | 4. | 344 | 19. | 120 | – | – | ||
| 1992/93 | 11. | 535 | – | – | 6. | 230 | 8. | 200 | 17. | 105 | – | – | ||
| 1993/94 | 6. | 841 | – | – | 18. | 91 | 3. | 515 | 12. | 195 | 12. | 40 | ||
| 1994/95 | 12. | 524 | – | – | 25. | 74 | 5. | 325 | 14. | 125 | – | – | ||
| 1995/96 | 22. | 346 | – | – | – | – | 6. | 280 | 30. | 66 | – | – | ||
| 1996/97 | 4. | 967 | – | – | – | – | 1. | 560 | 3. | 407 | – | – | ||
| 1997/98 | 4. | 912 | – | – | – | – | 2. | 565 | 6. | 304 | – | – | ||
| 1998/99 | 22. | 347 | – | – | – | – | 9. | 256 | 23. | 91 | – | – | ||
Races victories
editThese are her world cup victories.[8]
| Date | Location | Race |
|---|---|---|
| 26 January 1992 | Morzine | Super-G |
| 7 March 1993 | Morzine | Super-G |
| 5 December 1993 | Tignes | Giant slalom |
| 11 December 1993 | Veysonnaz | Giant slalom |
| 5 January 1994 | Morzine | Giant slalom |
| 8 January 1995 | Haus im Ennstal | Giant slalom |
| 2 March 1996 | Narvik | Giant slalom |
| 29 December 1996 | Semmering | Slalom |
| 17 January 1997 | Zwiesel | Giant slalom |
| 18 January 1997 | Zwiesel | Giant slalom |
| 26 January 1997 | Cortina d'Ampezzo | Giant slalom |
| 15 March 1997 | Vail | Giant slalom |
| 25 October 1997 | Tignes | Giant slalom |
| 21 November 1997 | Park City | Giant slalom |
| 19 December 1997 | Val-d'Isère | Giant slalom |
| 6 January 1998 | Bormio | Giant slalom |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Tanti auguri Deborah Compagnoni, la leggenda dello sci azzurro compie 50 anni" [Happy birthday Deborah Compagnoni, the Italian skiing legend turns 50.]. Sky TG24. 4 June 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f "Deborah Compagnoni - Athlete Information". fis-ski.com. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
- ^ Shulman, Ken (27 January 1994). "Compagnoni's Bold and Painful Course Toward Super-G Gold". The New York Times.
- ^ "A life in the day: Alessandro Benetton, retail magnate", The Sunday Times, John Follain, 13 April 2008
- ^ "Alessandro Benetton: Future Perfect", Elle, Alexandra Marshall, 6 January 2010 Archived 26 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Bambini, Nicola (25 January 2021). "Deborah Compagnoni and Alessandro Benetton, "marriage over" (after 13 years)" [Deborah Compagnoni e Alessandro Benetton, «matrimonio finito» (dopo 13 anni)]. Vanity Fair (in Italian).
- ^ "Morto Jacopo Compagnoni, il fratello di Deborah travolto da una valanga in Valfurva". La Repubblica. 16 December 2021.
- ^ Encyclopædia Britannica almanac 2008
External links
edit- Deborah Compagnoni at FIS (alpine)
- Deborah Compagnoni at Olympics.com
- Deborah Compagnoni at Olympedia
- Deborah Compagnoni at the CONI honored athlete website (in Italian)
- Deborah Compagnoni at the Comitato Olimpico Nazionale Italiano (in Italian)