Barely back on home soil, the Aigners were given a proper march by the Gloggnitz town band. After the successful hunt for medals, Veronika, Barbara and Johannes Aigner received flowers. There was congratulations from all sides – and that after a World Cup that could not have gone better.
Aigners follow suit after the Paralympics
“Yes, definitely. The World Cup went really well,” said Johannes Aigner in an interview with noe.ORF.at. “It was a good confirmation that the successes at the Paralympics in Beijing were not a one-off thing. It worked out well.” The 17-year-old brought home four medals. Together with guide Matteo Fleischmann, he won two gold and two silver medals.
For the double world champion, the secret of his success lies not only on the piste, but also off it. “Matteo and I are almost like brothers. Not only being together while skiing, but also doing something together apart from that, that binds and promotes the whole thing a lot,” Johannes is convinced.
Three sisters on the pedestal
His older sister Veronika experienced the greatest feelings of happiness in Spain. When she took part in the World Cup for the first time, the visually impaired 19-year-old celebrated twice with her sister and guide Elisabeth about gold – in the giant slalom and in the slalom. “It was my first World Cup and then to take home two gold medals, one can only dream of that,” said Veronika.
She was particularly pleased by the fact that she was able to celebrate with her sisters. “I can’t put into words how happy I am that I was allowed to stand on the podium with Liesi and Babsi.” Because the younger sister Barbara also won two medals in Espot. With silver and bronze, the 17-year-old and her guide Klara Sykora exceeded their own expectations.
Aigners won eight out of eleven medals
“I tried to take a medal home with me,” says Barbara Aigner. “I didn’t really care about the color because I had already won one last season. I just hoped that I would bring one home,” says the 17-year-old happily. Just looking at the red-white-red medal table shows just how strong the performances of the Aigner siblings were in Spain. Eight of eleven medals for Austria went to the Aigners.
Receiving the Aigner siblings at the airport
At the Para Ski World Championships in Spain, the visually impaired Aigner siblings from Gloggnitz won eight medals. Accordingly, they were received enthusiastically at Schwechat Airport yesterday.