Swiss · Grabs, Switzerland · Born 25 June 1981Swiss ski jumper nicknamed 'Harry Potter' for his bespectacled, youthful appearance, who became the most decorated Olympic ski jumper in history by sweeping both individual hill events at two separate Games.
Simon Ammann was born on 25 June 1981 in Grabs, Switzerland, and began ski jumping at age eight or eleven near his family's farm in Unterwasser, winning his first competition immediately. He made his Olympic debut at the 1998 Nagano Games as a 16-year-old, finishing a modest 35th, and had never won a World Cup event heading into the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics. At Salt Lake City, the unheralded 20-year-old stunned the field by winning both the normal hill and large hill gold medals, becoming only the second ski jumper ever - after Finland's Matti Nykänen in 1988 - to achieve the individual double at one Games. His youthful, bespectacled appearance drew comparisons to the fictional wizard Harry Potter, turning him into an overnight global celebrity who appeared on American talk shows despite hailing from a Swiss village of barely 1,000 residents. Ammann struggled to sustain his form through the mid-2000s, finishing a disappointing 15th at his best individual event at the 2006 Turin Olympics, before refining his technique and winning World Championship gold on the large hill in 2007. He returned to Olympic dominance at the 2010 Vancouver Games, again sweeping both individual hills - becoming the first man to win the normal hill event at two different Olympics and the only ski jumper with four individual Olympic golds - and capped the season by winning the World Cup overall title and Ski Flying World Championship. He went on to compete at six consecutive Olympics through 2022, carrying Switzerland's flag at Sochi 2014, and remains the most decorated Swiss Olympian in history.
Becoming the most decorated Olympic ski jumper in history by sweeping both individual hill events at two separate Winter Games, eight years apart
How They Played
Technically precise jumper known for exceptional consistency and composure, capable of peaking at the exact moment of an Olympic Games after quieter years
Lasting Impact
Regarded as the greatest Swiss winter athlete of all time and one of ski jumping's most enduring competitors, whose surprise breakthrough as a bespectacled 20-year-old made him one of the sport's most beloved figures
Career Honours
- 4x Olympic Gold Medalist (2002x2, 2010x2)
- Most decorated Olympic ski jumper in history
- First man to win the same individual ski jumping event at two different Olympics
- 2007 World Champion, Large Hill; 2010 Ski Flying World Champion
Swiss Athletes