Kempf to head Nordic combined team
The Swiss skiing association have appointed the country's most successful Nordic combined skier of all time as head of the national team.
Hippolyt Kempf, who won an individual gold medal at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary and a bronze in the team relay at the 1994 Games in Lillehammer, is to take over from Fredy Vogel at the end of the season.
The 35-year-old Kempf said his first target would be to restore calm to the team. “Above all,” he insisted, “I want to stop the negative spiral which has affected all parts of the Nordic combined.”
As well as his Olympic achievements, Kempf won a relay silver medal at the 1989 world championships, six World Cup victories and two third-place finishes in the World Cup overall standings. As a trainer, Kempf has most recently been involved with disabled skiers, securing medal successes at both the world championships and the Paralympics.
On Thursday Swiss-Ski’s director, Jean-Daniel Mudry described the appointment as an “excellent solution”. Kempf’s 64-year-old predecessor, Fredy Vogel, had already announced his intention to step down at the end of the season.
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