Stefan Gimpl
Austrian National Hero Stefan Gimpl was awarded The Rider of the Decade in 2003, and that's a title which pretty much sums up the talents of Stefan. The unassuming super hero of European snowboarding lets his riding do the talking, and adds a refreshing zest to the freestyle scene. The extent of the silent assassin's talents is mind-boggling with super charged performances in the backcountry only outweighed by his outrageous technical feats in the park. Unwavering commitment is one aspect of the many attributes that has seen Gimpl climb to the dizzy heights of snowboarding stardom. In the contest arena, Gimpl is famed for continually pushing his own limits and is always primed to pull it out of the bag when it matters most. When he's not shooting photos and filming, the modest Gimpl competes in some of the TTR's higher profile events. Outside of the competitive arena, Gimpl also gets stoked on climbing, soccer and playing golf.
GIMPL WINS BIG IN LONDON
O'Neill team rider Stefan Gimpl celebrated his 30th birthday in winning style last weekend by claiming a memorable first place at the LG Freeze Big Air World Cup event in London.
The Austrian freestyle stomp master triumphed over a stacked field of more than 50 international riders, putting on an incredible aerial display for the 15,000 amped spectators packed in together besides the city's iconic Battersea PowerStation.
The rider from Leogang – crowned 2009 FIS Big Air World Champion earlier this year –edged out Switzerland's Gian-Luca Cavigelli and Slovenia's
Domen Bizjak to claim his first Big Air victory of the current season.
The standard of riding was mind-blowing throughout the 3-day event, with all manner of tricks being thrown down by the super motivated pro riders. Once again though, Gimpl reminded everyone that class is permanent, stomping "the best frontside 1080 of my life" in the finals to claim top spot.
Speaking after the event, Gimpl said: "To win an event of this size and importance is a dream come true for me, and to do it on my birthday is just the icing on the cake. It's a good sign for the rest of the coming season, but right now I'm just going celebrate my birthday and this win – it's a great moment!"
Stay tuned for more Big Air madness courtesy of Stefan Gimpl later thisseason as he looks to retain his FIS Big Air World Championship title.And if early season form is anything to go by, it would take a verybrave person to bet against him doing just that.
Stefan GIMPL scores 2nd spot at FIS Big Air stop in Grenoble
It was a French dream come true: The competition couldn't have went better for the hosting home country as with Mathieu Crepel (52.1 points) a representative of the Equipe Tricolore took home the Gold medal in the first ever Big Air in the history of the LG Snowboard FIS World Cup on French soil. In an exciting final in Grenoble's Park Paul Mistral, the reigning Big Air and Halfpipe World Champion relegated 2008 World Cup winner Stefan Gimpl (51.4) from Austria with a lead of only 0.7 points to the second rank. In the class of its own battle for the podium in front of 15,000 spectators, Finland's Jaakko Ruha rounded out the podium with a score of 47.7.
Although France saw the desired win by one of it's riders it didn't seemed to end up like this after the first two rounds of the final as Stefan Gimpl had taken the lead due to an as usual stylish "Frontside 1080" earning a score of 27. Crepel followed with a gap of 1.8 points after he had performed the same trick. But although he had not competed in any Big Air contest after his big success at the 2007 World Championships in Arosa, the 24-year-old underlined in the decisive third run of the final that he rules the roost impressively winning his first ever Big Air World Cup.
Encouraged and whooped by the deafening cheers of 15,000 enthusiastic countrymen, Crepel sticked a "Switch Backside 900 tail" in defiance of the rain being awarded with 26.9 points by the five judges. Thereafter, the Austrian freestyle legend Gimpl couldn't counter in an adequate way any more – a fact, the new World Cup leader ungrudgingly accredited: "It was awesome today, simply high-class snowboarding at its best. I really enjoyed the battle with Mathieu although I lost it and finished as runner-up. In the end, he was spinning in the other direction while I was only able to throw in a "Frontside 900". However, I will take home only good memories of this outstanding event!
Stefan Gimpl wins freestyle.ch super final!
Stefan Gimpl is the winner of this year’s freestyle.ch snowboard competition. The Austrian O’Neill rider performed a perfect Frontside 1080 Mute Grab to beat Hampus Mosesson, Peetu Piroinen and Scotty Lago grabbing himself the “freestyle champ” title.
"I am super stoked that I won an event in front of so many people and up against such world class riders" said the newly crowned "freestyle champ". Congrats Stefan!
Interview- What was the highlight of your year?
"I remember that one jump we had in Verbier in the backcountry. Pretty big. I jumped it 6 times. And I landed 6 different tricks. That felt good. And winning the FIS Big Air in Austria felt really good too."
- What tricks/lines are you working on right now?
"I am still working on the 1080. Switch and regular. Any direction would satisfy me."
- Any big plans for 2006/07 season?
"I am really looking forward to the O'Neill Freeride Event in March. Helisnowboarding, yes."
- Who do you most enjoy riding with on the O'Neill team and why?
"Haugo is a cool guy to ride with. Always up for hitting some jumps."
- If you could ride anywhere for 2 weeks straight, where would you go and why?
"The best is always to follow the fresh snow."
- What do you get up to when you're not busy traveling and riding?
"Besides snowboarding I like golf, tennis, surfing, skateboarding, photography."
- Who have you been filming with recently (production company name and film name)?
"Last season I worked with mmp films from Switzerland. You can see me in "Snowbored" "
- Which riders did you look up to before you turned pro?
"Craig Kelly, Andy Hetzel and Jeff Brushie"
- Which rider is going to be the next big thing?
"There are so many good riders out there today. I cannot really pick one of them."
- Where do you see yourself five years from now?
"Sitting on the veranda of a big house. My 5 kids are playing in the backyard with the dog and my wife just went inside get some beers."
- Where do you see yourself five minutes from now?
"I am going to have breakfast in the Austrian army. "
- Does snowboarding sometimes feel like a proper job for you – why/why not?
"Luckily only when I receive a paycheck from time to time."
- Any advice for riders who want to turn pro?
"Love snowboarding. Always put snowboarding on first place."
- Which O'Neill product are you most stoked on right now?
"The Ipod control gloves. They really work. Sick. "
- Stefan GIMPL scores 2nd spot at FIS Big Air stop in Grenoble (FRA) and secures his current lead on FIS BA ranking
- Grenoble
- December 4, 2008
It was a French dream come true: The competition couldn't have went better for the hosting home country as with Mathieu Crepel (52.1 points) a representative of the Equipe Tricolore took home the Gold medal in the first ever Big Air in the history of the LG Snowboard FIS World Cup on French soil. In an exciting final in Grenoble's Park Paul Mistral, the reigning Big Air and Halfpipe World Champion relegated 2008 World Cup winner Stefan Gimpl (51.4) from Austria with a lead of only 0.7 points to the second rank. In the class of its own battle for the podium in front of 15,000 spectators, Finland's Jaakko Ruha rounded out the podium with a score of 47.7.
Although France saw the desired win by one of it's riders it didn't seemed to end up like this after the first two rounds of the final as Stefan Gimpl had taken the lead due to an as usual stylish "Frontside 1080" earning a score of 27. Crepel followed with a gap of 1.8 points after he had performed the same trick. But although he had not competed in any Big Air contest after his big success at the 2007 World Championships in Arosa, the 24-year-old underlined in the decisive third run of the final that he rules the roost impressively winning his first ever Big Air World Cup.
Encouraged and whooped by the deafening cheers of 15,000 enthusiastic countrymen, Crepel sticked a "Switch Backside 900 tail" in defiance of the rain being awarded with 26.9 points by the five judges. Thereafter, the Austrian freestyle legend Gimpl couldn't counter in an adequate way any more – a fact, the new World Cup leader ungrudgingly accredited: "It was awesome today, simply high-class snowboarding at its best. I really enjoyed the battle with Mathieu although I lost it and finished as runner-up. In the end, he was spinning in the other direction while I was only able to throw in a "Frontside 900". However, I will take home only good memories of this outstanding event!