Hannes Schneider
Hannes Schneider | |
---|---|
![]() Hannes Schneider in Japan in 1930 | |
Born |
Johann Schneider June 24, 1890 Stuben am Arlberg, Austria |
Died |
April 26, 1955 64) North Conway, New Hampshire | (aged
Occupation | ski school instructor/director |
Known for | Arlberg Technique, St. Anton ski school |
Awards | Inducted US Ski Hall of Fame (1958) |
Johann "Hannes" Schneider (June 24, 1890 – April 26, 1955) was an Austrian Ski instructor of the first half of the twentieth century.
He was born in the town of Stuben am Arlberg in Austria as a son of a cheesemaker.
He first observed skiing in 1900, and in 1903 obtained an authentic pair of skis and some instruction from Viktor Sohm.[1] In 1907 he became a ski guide at the Hotel Post in St. Anton, Austria where he began work on what became known as the Arlberg technique. After serving as a ski instructor for the Austrian army during the First World War,[2] he returned to the Hotel Post. In 1920 he appeared in a documentary film based on the Arlberg technique;[3] he formed a semi-independent ski school where by 1924 he had formalized his method of instruction. In 1928 he helped organize the international Arlberg-Kandahar alpine race at St. Anton.
In the inter war period he also appeared in several more of Dr. Arnold Fanck's ski films. Der weiße Rausch, which helped make skiing popular, was filmed at the Arlberg in the winter of 1930/1931. He also co-wrote a best-selling instruction book (with Fanck), named Die Wunder des Schneeschuhs which became translated to English as The Wonders of Skiing in 1931. Former students of Hannes Schneider include Otto Lang, Friedl Pfeifer, and Toni Matt .
In 1939 he moved his operations to Cranmore Mountain Ski Resort in North Conway, New Hampshire. He had run into trouble with Nazi policies and even spent time in jail after the Anschluss. During the Second World War he helped train the 10th Mountain Division of the U. S. Army in which his son Herbert served. Hannes became a member of the US Ski Hall of Fame in 1958.[4]
The New England Ski Museum hosts the Hannes Schneider Meister Skiing Cup in his memory every March at Cranmore Mountain resort. During 2005 the New England Ski Museum featured an exhibit on the life of Hannes Schneider and his impact on the sport of skiing.
Selected filmography
- Das Wunder des Schneeschuhs (1920)
- Im Kampf mit dem Berge - In Sturm und Eis (1921)
- Mountain of Destiny (1924)
- The Holy Mountain (1926)
- Hannes Schneider (1926) short film
- Struggle for the Matterhorn (1928)
- The White Ecstasy (1931)
- The Scoundrel (1939)
References
- ↑ Allen, E. John B., (2007) The Culture and Sport of Skiing: From Antiquity to World War II. Amherst, MA, USA: University of Massachusetts Press, ISBN 978-1558496002 pg 261
- ↑ Lunn, Peter (1983) Guinness Book of Skiing Sterling Publishing Co ISBN 0-85112-219-1 pg 31
- ↑ Hannes Schneider at filmportal.de
- ↑ Hannes Schneider at US National Ski Hall of Fame
- Fanck, Arnold; Schneider, Hannes (1925) Wunder des Schneeschuhs; ein System des richtigen Skilaufens und seine Anwendung im alpinen Geländelauf Hamburg: Gebrüder Enoch OCLC 10252521
- Pfeifer, Emil Armin (1934) Hannes Schneider's hohe Schule des Skilaufs Alpensportverl.
- Schneider, Hannes (1935) Auf Schi in Japan Tyrolia-Verlag
- Rybizka, Benno (1938) The Hannes Schneider Ski Technique Harcourt, Brace
- Schneider, Hannes (ed.) (1940) The Northland Ski Manual Northland Ski Manufacturing Company
- Frank, Virginia Katherine (1957) Hannes Schneider: His Life and His Contributions to Skiing Smith College, Northampton, Mass. OCLC 34990536
- Fairlie, Gerard (1957) Flight Without Wings. The Biography of Hannes Schneider London: Hodder and Stoughton
- "Schneider's Films" Skiing Magazine (Feb. 1961) p. 64
- Cohen, Stan (1985) A Pictorial History of Downhill Skiing Pictorial Histories Pub. Co ISBN 0-933126-55-7 pp 24–25
- Thöni, Hans (1990) Hannes Schneider: zum 100. Geburtstag des Skipioniers und Begründers der Arlberg-Technik Tyrolia-Verlag ISBN 9783702217792
- Lund, Morten (Spring 1993) "Films of Hannes Schneider" Skiing Heritage Vol 5 #1:8-11
- Legacy: Austria's influence on American skiing. Part 1: Hannes Schneider & his disciples (2005) retrospective film by Ian Scully, Rick Moulton; Culture Films OCLC 76765013
- Killy and Vierhaus (eds) (2005) Dictionary of German Biography Walter de Gruyter ISBN 9783110966299 pg 56
- Thöni, Hans (2007) Schneider, Hannes in: Neue Deutsche Biographie (NDB). Band 23, Berlin: Duncker & Humblot ISBN 978-3-428-11204-3
External links
- A biography of Hannes Schneider
- Mount Cranmore where the Meister Skiing race is held
- Skischule Arlberg, founded by Hannes Schneider in 1921
- Hannes Schneider, father of modern skiing
- Timeline entries for years 1910, 1918, 1920, 1921, 1925, 1928, 1939 in Skiing Heritage
- Multiple articles on aspects of Schneider's life in Skiing Heritage magazine
- Hannes Schneider on IMDb