Irene Epple-Waigel (; born 18 June 1957) is a German former

alpine skier Alpine skiing, or downhill skiing, is the pastime of sliding down snow-covered slopes on skis with fixed-heel bindings, unlike other types of skiing ( cross-country, Telemark, or ski jumping), which use skis with free-heel bindings. Whether fo ...

. She won a total of 11

Alpine Skiing World Cup The FIS Alpine Ski World Cup is the top international circuit of alpine skiing competitions, launched in 1966 by a group of ski racing friends and experts which included French journalist Serge Lang and the alpine ski team directors from France ...

races and two World Cups, in giant slalom and combined (both in

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C., Un ...

). She also won a silver medal at the

1980 Winter Olympic Games The 1980 Winter Olympics, officially the XIII Olympic Winter Games and also known as Lake Placid 1980, were an international multi-sport event held from February 13 to 24, 1980, in Lake Placid, New York, United States. Lake Placid was elected ...

in giant slalom. In the 1978 FIS Alpine Skiing World Championships at Garmisch-Partenkirchen she won the silver medal in the downhill. On 9 January 1983 she won the first women's World Cup Super-G race, held in

Verbier Verbier is a village located in south-western Switzerland in the canton of Valais. It is a holiday resort and ski area in the Swiss Alps and is recognised as one of the premier off-piste resorts in the world. Some areas are covered with snow al ...

. In 1992 she completed her medical studies in Munich, and in November 1994 married Theo Waigel, who was the German Finance Minister from 1989 to 1998. In 1980 she was named the German Sportswoman of the Year. She is the sister of alpine skier

Maria Epple Maria Epple Beck (born 11 March 1959) is a German retired alpine skier. She is the 1978 giant slalom world champion. She is the sister of Irene Epple Irene Epple-Waigel (; born 18 June 1957) is a German former alpine skier. She won a total of ...

.Irene Epple
. sports-reference.com

World Cup victories

References

* *

External links

* 1957 births Living people People from Ostallgäu Sportspeople from Swabia (Bavaria) German female alpine skiers Spouses of German politicians Olympic medalists in alpine skiing FIS Alpine Ski World Cup champions Olympic silver medalists for West Germany Olympic alpine skiers of West Germany Alpine skiers at the 1976 Winter Olympics Alpine skiers at the 1980 Winter Olympics Alpine skiers at the 1984 Winter Olympics Recipients of the Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Medalists at the 1980 Winter Olympics 20th-century German women {{Germany-Winter-Olympic-medalist-stub