MarÃa José Rienda Contreras (born 29 June 1975) is a former
World Cup
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...
alpine ski racer. She served as the President of the
Consejo Superior de Deportes and
Secretary of State for Sports of Spain from June 2018 to January 2020.
Biography
Rienda Contreras has 6
World Cup
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...
victories, all in giant slalom. Her victories in 2005 were the first Spanish World Cup victories since
Blanca Fernández Ochoa won in December
1991
It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...
. MarÃa José Rienda Contreras represented
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
in five
Winter Olympics
The Winter Olympic Games (), also known as the Winter Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were held i ...
.
Her interest for this sport began when her father began to work on the Station of
Sierra Nevada
The Sierra Nevada ( ) is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primari ...
already at the age of nine she was possessing her first pair of skis. After some national success, she joined the Spanish national team at age 14. On 25 October 2003 Rienda Contreras scored her first World Cup podium, by coming third in the giant slalom in
Sölden
Sölden () is a municipality in the Ötztal valley of Tyrol, Austria.
Geography
At c. , it is the largest municipality in the country. The population of 3,449 (as of 2003) is outnumbered by tourists, of which 15,000 can be accommodated. Wit ...
,
Austria
Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
. She scored two more podiums that season and finished third in the giant slalom World Cup that season.
The following season, 2004–2005, began with a new podium, repeating the third position of the previous year in Sölden. Later she scored another third position, now in
St. Moritz
St. Moritz ( , , ; ; ; ; ) is a high Alpine resort town in the Engadine in Switzerland, at an elevation of about above sea level. It is Upper Engadine's major town and a municipality in the administrative region of Maloja in the Swiss ...
,
Switzerland
Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
. On 20 February 2005 Maria Jose Rienda Contreras scored her first World Cup win, in the giant slalom in
Ã…re
Åre () is a Urban areas in Sweden, locality and one of the leading Scandinavian ski resorts situated in Åre Municipality, Jämtland County, Sweden with 3,200 inhabitants in 2018. It is, however, not the seat of the municipality, which is Järpe ...
,
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
. Later she scored another victory, this time in the giant slalom in
Lenzerheide
Lenzerheide ( Romansh: ''Lai'') is a mountain resort in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland at the foot of the Parpaner Rothorn. The village lies in the municipality Vaz/Obervaz in the district of Albula, sub-district Alvaschein.
Th ...
, Switzerland. Also this season she finished third in the giant slalom World Cup standings.
After retiring from competition, she became involved in sport management. In June 2018 she was appointed Secretary of State for Sports by the
Spanish government
The government of Spain () is the central government which leads the executive branch and the General State Administration of the Kingdom of Spain.
The Government consists of the Prime Minister and the Ministers; the prime minister has the o ...
.
World Cup victories
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Rienda Contreras, Maria Jose
Spanish female alpine skiers
Alpine skiers at the 1994 Winter Olympics
Alpine skiers at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Alpine skiers at the 2002 Winter Olympics
Alpine skiers at the 2006 Winter Olympics
Alpine skiers at the 2010 Winter Olympics
Olympic alpine skiers for Spain
1975 births
Living people