Wilhelm Bogner Sr. (7 February 1909 – 27 July 1977) was a German

Nordic combined skier Nordic combined is a winter sport in which athletes compete in cross-country skiing and ski jumping. The Nordic combined at the Winter Olympics has been held since the first ever Winter Olympics in 1924, while the FIS Nordic Combined World Cup ...

who competed in the 1930s. He and his wife,

Maria Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial *170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 *Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, da ...

, co-founded a ski apparel company that bore their name.

Personal life

Bogner was born on in

Traunstein Traunstein (Central Bavarian: ''Traunstoa'') is a town in the south-eastern part of Bavaria, Germany, and is the administrative center of a much larger district of the same name. The town serves as a local government, retail, health services, ...

, Germany and died on in

Hausham Hausham is a municipality in the district of Miesbach in Bavaria in Germany. Geography geographical classification Hausham is located approximately 45 km south of Munich, between Miesbach and Schliersee. It is surrounded to the south by moun ...

, Germany. In 1937 he married

Maria Lux Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial *170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 *Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, da ...

, an athletic woman who joined his company to design sports apparel in 1932. Together, they had three children, Rosemarie, Michael, and Wilhelm (Willy Jr.) They established a clothing line led to outfitting the German national ski team at the 1936 Winter Olympics.

Skiing career

Bogner won a pair of medals at the

FIS Nordic World Ski Championships The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships is a biennial nordic skiing event organized by the International Ski Federation (FIS). The World Championships was started in 1925 for men and opened for women's participation in 1954. World Championship e ...

with a silver in the 4 x 10 km event in 1934 and a bronze in the

nordic combined Nordic combined is a winter sport in which athletes compete in cross-country skiing (sport), cross-country skiing and ski jumping. The Nordic combined at the Winter Olympics has been held since the first ever 1924 Winter Olympics, Winter Olympic ...

in 1935. Bogner Sr. also finished 6th in the 4 x 10 km event and 12th in the Nordic combined at the

1936 Winter Olympics The 1936 Winter Olympics, officially known as the IV Olympic Winter Games (german: IV. Olympische Winterspiele) and commonly known as Garmisch-Partenkirchen 1936 ( bar, Garmasch-Partakurch 1936), were a winter multi-sport event held from 6 to 16 ...

Garmisch-Partenkirchen Garmisch-Partenkirchen (; Bavarian: ''Garmasch-Partakurch''), nicknamed Ga-Pa, is an Alpine ski town in Bavaria, southern Germany. It is the seat of government of the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen (abbreviated ''GAP''), in the O ...

, where he also took the

Olympic Oath The Olympic Oath (distinct from the Olympic creed) is a solemn promise made by one athlete, judge or official, and one coach at the Opening Ceremony of each Olympic Games. Each oath taker is from the host nation and takes the oath on behalf of al ...

. During his career, Bogner Sr. was an eleven-time German and five-time

nordic skiing Nordic skiing encompasses the various types of skiing in which the toe of the ski boot is fixed to the Ski binding, binding in a manner that allows the heel to rise off the ski, unlike alpine skiing, where the boot is attached to the ski from toe ...

champion. In 1933, he participated together with

Matthias Wörndle Matthias Wörndle (7 December 1909 – 15 October 1942) was a German cross-country skier. Wörndle was born in Partenkirchen, where he was member of the ''Skiclub Partenkirchen'' (SCP) He was member of the Bronze teams at the first and second e ...

and Gustav "Gustl" Müller at the first

Trofeo Mezzalama The Mezzalama Trophy ( it, Trofeo Mezzalama, french: Trophée Mezzalama, a.k.a. ''white marathon''

event, where they placed third.Storia della Valle D'Aosta

Ski apparel company

Bogner's success as a skier allowed him and his wife, Maria, to establish a clothing line in 1932, that included outfitting the German national ski team at the 1936 Winter Olympics. Following his stay as a

POW A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Bogner Sr. returned to their business in 1947. His wife's development of stretch pants in the early 1950s led to their adoption by such celebrities as

Marilyn Monroe Marilyn Monroe (; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; 1 June 1926 4 August 1962) was an American actress. Famous for playing comedic " blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and early 1960s, as wel ...

Jayne Mansfield Jayne Mansfield (born Vera Jayne Palmer; April 19, 1933 – June 29, 1967) was an American actress, singer, nightclub entertainer, and ''Playboy'' Playmate. A sex symbol of the 1950s and early 1960s while under contract at 20th Century Fox, Man ...

, and

Ingrid Bergman Ingrid Bergman (29 August 191529 August 1982) was a Swedish actress who starred in a variety of European and American films, television movies, and plays.Obituary ''Variety'', 1 September 1982. With a career spanning five decades, she is often ...

and contributed to the prosperity of the firm.

Legacy

His son, Willy Bogner Jr. (born 1942), was a successful

alpine skier Alpine skiing, or downhill skiing, is the pastime of sliding down snow-covered slopes on skis with fixed-heel bindings, unlike other types of skiing ( cross-country, Telemark, or ski jumping), which use skis with free-heel bindings. Whether for ...

in the late 1950s and 1960s who competed for Germany at the

1960 Winter Olympics The 1960 Winter Olympics (officially the VIII Olympic Winter Games and also known as Squaw Valley 1960) were a winter multi-sport event held from February 18 to 28, 1960, at the Squaw Valley Resort (now known as Palisades Tahoe) in Squaw Vall ...

in Squaw Valley and the

1964 Winter Olympics The 1964 Winter Olympics, officially known as the IX Olympic Winter Games (german: IX. Olympische Winterspiele) and commonly known as Innsbruck 1964 ( bar, Innschbruck 1964, label=Austro-Bavarian), was a winter multi-sport event which was celebr ...

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; bar, Innschbruck, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian ) is the capital of Tyrol (state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the ...

. Bogner Jr. would later go into

filmmaking Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, casti ...

in 1967, then follow into Bogner Sr.'s footsteps and start his own ski collection in 1971. Bogner Sr. died in 1977. Bogner Jr. took over the line and oversaw further growth and marketing success until 2014 when its costumes for the German Winter Olympics team drew unfavorable review and the company was seeking a buyer. As of 2018, sales were in decline and the company had not found a new buyer.

References

External links

*
IOC 1936 Winter Olympics
*
Bogner Ski
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bogner, Willy Sr. 1909 births 1977 deaths German male cross-country skiers German male Nordic combined skiers Cross-country skiers at the 1936 Winter Olympics Nordic combined skiers at the 1936 Winter Olympics German male ski mountaineers German fashion designers FIS Nordic World Ski Championships medalists in cross-country skiing FIS Nordic World Ski Championships medalists in Nordic combined Oath takers at the Olympic Games People from Traunstein Sportspeople from Upper Bavaria SS officers German prisoners of war in World War II