Skier, three-time Olympic champion - one of the most versatile athletes of his generation. It can be argued that this person is almost always able to claim the highest steps of the podium in any race, in any place and in any style.
Dario Cologna is the only three-time winner in the overall standings of the World Cup in a modern form - the peloton.
Currently, this athlete is one of the most popular skiers. Having been born in mountain Switzerland, Dario, in fact, had to stand on skis (mountain), which he did at a very young age. But fate decreed a little differently: after practicing on the slopes for several years, he still exchanged skis for cross-country skiing.
short biography
In 1986, in Switzerland (Santa Maria Vol Mustair), on March 11, the future talented athlete was born - Dario Alonzo Cologna.
At the age of 5, Dario Cologna began skiing (mountain) for the first time. He switched to cross-country skiing in 1999. He also was actively interested in sports such as cycling and football.
As a young man, the young athlete won numerous medals at the international level. For the first time in the World Cup, he took part in 2004. These were skiing among juniors in Norway. Free style race (10 kilometers), he completed the 24th.
It is difficult to say what the athlete’s choice of this particular sport is related to (possibly with less competition), but thanks to what happened, the Swiss brought his country 3 Olympic medals of the highest standard.
He won the first race only in 2006. This happened at one of the prestigious Tour de Ski races, which consists of eight stages in which athletes must cover 60 km.
Dario Cologna: photo, success story
The athlete is versatile. Throughout his sports career, he has been involved in both ultra-short and ultra-long races. Moreover, they are carried out using both classical and free styles.
Three times (2009, 2011, 2012), the Swiss won the rather prestigious Tour de Ski race (multi-day), which is held annually in December-January.
Being one of the few famous world stars of skiing, Dario Cologna for a long time could not achieve significant achievements in major prestigious international tournaments.
For example, in Vancouver 2010, he won a gold Olympic medal (15 km) with a separate start, but fell at the very last corner of the 50-kilometer marathon.
At the Sochi Olympics (2014), Dario won the individual race and the skiathlon. But in the marathon, like 4 years ago, he again faced an unfortunate failure: in the last section of the race his ski was broken.
Before the Olympics in Sochi (2014), Dario Cologna was considered one of the main favorites, and the Swiss deservedly received their first Sochi gold for racing 15 kilometers, becoming a two-time champion at such a distance. The second gold in Sochi is in a skiathlon (15 km - freestyle, 15 km - classic).
Dario Cologna: personal life
Now Colonia lives in Davos, having 2 citizenships (Italian and Swiss). The star skier speaks five languages (Italian, Romansh, French, German and English).
However, he very rarely gives interviews to journalists of various television channels and sports publications, so almost nothing is known about his personal life. He prefers to spend most of his free time playing sports alone.
Finally
Now the Swiss skier is 30 years old, and probably he will still be able to take part in subsequent Olympic games and also fight for prizes in various types of races. Apparently, he still has strength and incredible opportunities.