![]() The new skis, as well as the shiny golden ski suit, will famously stay in the locker, as the young man proves that it is the human element that makes him a winner. In a way, Chasing the Line works as a coming-of-age drama, which addresses not only the commercialisation of sport, but also Klammer’s journey in forging his own identity as an athlete. Waldner not only provides his portrayal of fellow Carinthian Klammer with the proper dialect, but he also skilfully channels his inner strife, his fear as well as his confidence in winning. The question of whether Eva will take her university exam on the day of the race or go to Innsbruck to cheer Franz on seems like a conflict that is dead on arrival. It does, however, sometimes feels too forced and distracts us from the main story. This is a noble and empowering move in the narrative. Serving as his rock during these five exceptional days, Eva herself has to learn how to be not only the girlfriend of Franz, but also the woman by the side of celebrity Klammer, without losing her own identity. More familiar is the inclusion of the sickly sweet love story between Franz and his girlfriend, Eva. What makes a winner a winner? His pricey supplier, or his skills and guts? At its centre is the often-overlooked question of sports equipment versus athlete. Not so this one.Ĭhasing the Line not only forgoes the popular trope of “pausing before the climax to have a flashback of one’s life” it also narrows the timeline down to only a few days, like recent sports films such as Borg/McEnroe or Battle of the Sexes (2017), making for a more focused and compelling drama. ![]() Most biopics focus on a lifetime of overcoming the odds, as well as the ultimate showdown with an opponent from a rival country. Like cheese”, there is an element of conflict embedded in the story, which rarely makes for good viewing in a sports drama. He had the expectations of a whole nation upon him, plus a marketing campaign that his ski supplier, Fischer, kept pushing repeatedly.Įquipping him with an expensive, new pair of skis, whose “groundbreaking” design Klammer claims “has a hole. But the actual narrative focus lies elsewhere: the movie examines the immense pressure placed on the 22-year-old. Through 2018, no Olympic men's downhill champion has repeated Russi remains the sole defender to medal.Packed with thrilling race sequences in the white powder, sleek, colourful cars and winter outfits, as well as nostalgia-inducing analogue equipment, the movie evokes the pleasure of a feel-good time capsule and is a testament to one of Austria’s best. His winning time was 2:18.16, more than a half-minute behind Klammer's. ![]() Įgon Zimmermann, also of Austria, took the gold medal a dozen years earlier in the 1964 Olympic downhill. At age 22, the win elevated him to an international celebrity and he was featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated. The course length was 3.020 km (1.88 mi) and Klammer's famous winning run resulted in an average speed of 102.828 km/h (63.9 mph), with an average vertical descent rate of 8.2285 m/s (27.0 ft/s), significantly faster than previous Olympic downhills. The starting gate was at an elevation of 1,950 m (6,398 ft) above sea level, with a vertical drop of 870 m (2,854 ft). Klammer won the gold medal, Russi took the silver, and Herbert Plank of Italy was the bronze medalist. Franz Klammer of Austria was the defending World Cup downhill champion and led the current season he had also won the pre-Olympic World Cup downhill at Patcherkofel a year earlier in January 1975. The defending world champion was David Zwilling of Austria, who had recently retired Bernhard Russi of Switzerland was the defending Olympic champion. ![]() The Men's Downhill competition of the 1976 Winter Olympics at Innsbruck, Austria, was held at Patscherkofel on Thursday, 5 February, on the same course as in 1964.
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