Ueli Kestenholz

Ueli Kestenholz

Medal record
Representing  Switzerland
Men's snowboarding
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place1998 NaganoGiant Slalom

Ueli Kestenholz (10 May 1975 – 11 January 2026) was a Swiss snowboarder and speed riding pioneer.

Biography

Kestenholz was snowboard world champion in 2000 and 2001. He was one of the first-ever recipients of an Olympic medal in snowboarding (bronze) at the 1998 Winter Olympics (giant slalom). He was a two-time gold medalist at the Winter X-Games in snowboard cross (also known as boardercross). After his third Olympic Games, at Turin 2006, Kestenholz quit the World Cup circuit to focus 100% on freeriding.

Besides freeriding on a snowboard, he became one of the pioneers of speed flying and speed riding in Switzerland. In May 2009, he made the first speedriding descent of the Matterhorn.[1] Together with Mathias Roten, he produced PlayGravity, an award-winning multisport-movie, showing their speedriding descent of Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau in one day.[1][2]

Kestenholz died at the Spital Sion in Sion on 11 January 2026, after an avalanche accident in the Valais Alps. He was 50.[3][4]

References

  1. 1 2 Brendza, Will (13 January 2026). "Trailblazing Olympic Snowboarder Dies in Avalanche in Swiss Alps". GearJunkie.
  2. ↑ boardhead1. "CH PLAYGRAVITY 1 – the movie Trailer". YouTube. Retrieved 17 February 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  3. ↑ Roth, Hans Peter (13 January 2026). "Bei Lawinenunglück: Ueli Kestenholz (50) tödlich verunfallt". Berner Zeitung (in German).
  4. ↑ Henderson, Devon (13 January 2026). "Pioneering Olympic snowboarder Ueli Kestenholz dies in Swiss avalanche". The New York Times.
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