Michael Grünberger

Last updated
Michael Grünberger
Medal record
Skeleton
World Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1990 Königssee Men
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 1991 Igls Men

Michael Grünberger is an Austrian luger and skeleton racer who competed during the 1990s.

Austria Federal republic in Central Europe

Austria, officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in Central Europe comprising 9 federated states. Its capital, largest city and one of nine states is Vienna. Austria has an area of 83,879 km2 (32,386 sq mi), a population of nearly 9 million people and a nominal GDP of $477 billion. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Hungary and Slovakia to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west. The terrain is highly mountainous, lying within the Alps; only 32% of the country is below 500 m (1,640 ft), and its highest point is 3,798 m (12,461 ft). The majority of the population speaks local Bavarian dialects as their native language, and German in its standard form is the country's official language. Other regional languages are Hungarian, Burgenland Croatian, and Slovene.

Luge sliding sport where where an individual or a team of 2 propels a luge down a natural or artificial track

A luge is a small one- or two-person sled on which one sleds supine and feet-first. A luger steers by using their calf muscles to flex the sled's runners or by exerting opposite shoulder pressure to the seat. Racing sleds weigh 21–25 kg (46–55 lb) for singles and 25–30 kg (55–66 lb) for doubles. Luge is also the name of an Olympic sport.

Skeleton (sport) Winter sliding sport

Skeleton is a winter sliding sport in which a person rides a small sled, known as a skeleton bobsled, down a frozen track while lying face down and head-first. The sport and the sled may have been named from the bony appearance of the sled.

As a skeleton athlete, he won two medals in the men's event at the FIBT World Championships with a gold in 1990 and a bronze in 1990. His best finish in the Skeleton World Cup was second twice in the men's event (1990-1, 1995-6).

The FIBT World Championships 1990 took place in St. Moritz, Switzerland (Bobsleigh) and Königssee, West Germany (Skeleton). St. Moritz hosted a championship event for the record seventeenth time. The Swiss city had hosted the event previously in 1931 (Four-man), 1935 (Four-man), 1937 (Four-man), 1938 (Two-man), 1939 (Two-man), 1947, 1955, 1957, 1959, 1965, 1970, 1974, 1977, 1982, 1987, and 1989 (Skeleton). Meanwhile, Königssee hosted a championship event for the third time, doing so previously in 1979 and 1986.

Grünberger's only World cup victory in luge took place in Igls in 1990.

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