April 2002 - Nr. 4
German Skier Takes Third Gold Medal at Paralympics
TWIG - Alpine skier Martin Braxenthaler won his third gold medal at the Salt Lake City Paralympics Wednesday (March 13). The 30-year-old athlete from Traunstein (Bavaria) dashed through falling snow to beat second-place competitor Ronny Persson of Sweden in the giant slalom event with a total time of 2:11.38 for two runs. He also struck gold over the weekend in the men’s downhill and super-G competitions. Braxenthaler, whose legs were paralyzed in a work accident, started competing in mono-skiing in 1997. His sport is a form of downhill skiing where athletes sit on a seat mounted to a single ski. Before coming to Salt Lake, Braxenthaler won a bronze medal in super-G in Nagano (1998), two gold medals and one silver at the World Championships in Anzere, Switzerland (2000) and the Silbernes Lorbeerblatt (silver laurel leaf), a sports award from the president of the Federal Republic.
