The skiing world bids farewell to Erich Sailer, a legendary figure who passed away on 20 August 2025, just days before his 100th birthday. Known as the ‘Yoda of ski racing’ and the ‘Wizard of Buck,’ Sailer dedicated his life to transforming alpine skiing in the United States, from its humble beginnings to becoming one of the most influential coaches in skiing history.

Originally from Telfs, Austria, he emigrated to North America in the 1950s with a clear vision.

‘Austrian Erich Sailer exported the technical and disciplined training of European skiing to young American talents.’

His innovative spirit led him, in 1956, to found the first summer ski camp at Timberline on Mount Hood, Oregon, a revolutionary proposal that allowed generations of athletes to continue training even out of season. Years later, in 1967, he launched another pioneering project at Bear Tooth Pass, near Red Lodge, Montana, which at its peak attracted more than 700 skiers in just 40 days of intensive training.

But it was at Buck Hill (known as “Buck Bump” to the locals), a small hill in Burnsville, Minnesota, where Sailer left his deepest mark. He arrived there in 1960, when the site had a vertical drop of just 95 metres, and in less than a year he managed to get four of his athletes to compete in the Junior Nationals. His goal was ambitious and visionary: to prove that even in the flatlands of the American Midwest, world-class champions could be trained. That determination, coupled with his ability to spot talent and his tireless discipline, transformed Buck Hill into a veritable factory of elite skiers and the epicentre of youth ski racing in the country.

From that small hill in Minnesota, Erich Sailer began to write some of the most important pages in modern alpine skiing. His approach, based on a combination of discipline, detailed observation and a passion for learning, enabled thousands of young skiers to turn their potential into tangible results.

Trainer of champions such as Lindsey Vonn

Of all the talents he moulded, Lindsey Vonn is undoubtedly the most iconic reflection of his legacy. The relationship between Sailer and Vonn began when she was just a seven-year-old girl. Under his watchful supervision, the young Lindsey trained at summer camps on Mount Hood and travelled to Europe at the age of nine to perfect her technique against the best of her generation. Later, as a teenager, she continued to hone her skiing on the floodlit slopes of Buck Hill, while Sailer followed each of her runs with a clinical eye from the timing hut.

In numerous interviews, Vonn has acknowledged the decisive role her mentor played in her career and personal life. ‘I wouldn’t be the person or skier I am today without him,’ she once said. ‘He did more for skiing than any other coach in America, and perhaps in the world.’ But beyond the triumphs and medals, Vonn remembers the values that Sailer instilled in all his students: authenticity, effort and love for the sport. ‘He constantly repeated to me: “Be true to yourself. Don’t change because you were fast just the way you were,”’ said the champion, who considers these words a permanent guide both on and off the slopes.

Sailer also trained other great figures in American skiing, such as Kristina Koznick, Julia Mancuso, Sarah Schleper and Resi Stiegler, all of whom competed in the 2006 Turin Olympics, as well as Paula Moltzan, who recalled with emotion that “Erich never told you you were good if you weren’t; but behind his honesty was a total commitment to getting the best out of you.”

The master of ski coaches

Beyond his role as a direct coach, Sailer was also a trainer of trainers. His demanding but humane approach inspired coaches across the country to replicate his philosophy. Among his disciples are renowned coaches and athletes such as Billy Kidd, Sarah Schleper, Egon Zimmermann, Barbara Ann Cochran and Christian Pravda, who acknowledge that he was a constant source of inspiration.

His dedication did not go unnoticed. In 1998, he received the USSA’s first ‘Development Coach of the Year’ award, and the United States Olympic Committee honoured him as ‘Ski Coach of the Year’. In 2004, he was awarded the Tom Reynolds Lifetime Achievement Award, and a year later he was inducted into the prestigious U.S. Ski & Snowboard Hall of Fame, cementing his place as one of the historical pillars of the sport.

An exceptional legacy and track record in alpine skiing

The passing of Erich Sailer is not only the loss of a coach who made history, but also the farewell to a pioneer who forever changed the way alpine skiing is understood in the United States. From his innovative vision with summer camps to the transformation of Buck Hill into a world-class centre, his influence lives on in every athlete he coached and every coach who learned from his method.

Erich Sailer’s sporting successes as a coach are as extensive as they are remarkable, reflecting his ability to transform raw talent into world-class athletes. Under his leadership, more than 25,000 skiers passed through his training programmes, many of whom went on to reach the elite level of international alpine skiing.

Among his greatest achievements are:

  • Five athletes at the 2006 Turin Olympics, a historic milestone for a single ski club. These skiers were Lindsey Vonn, Kristina Koznick, Julia Mancuso, Sarah Schleper and Resi Stiegler, all trained from their early stages in Sailer’s programmes.
  • The consecration of Lindsey Vonn as one of the best skiers of all time, with 82 World Cup victories, multiple Crystal Globes and an Olympic gold medal in Vancouver 2010, cemented by the technical fundamentals acquired under his tutelage at Buck Hill.
  • The development of Paula Moltzan, a World Cup medallist who was trained using his rigorous and technical method.
  • The participation of dozens of his athletes in US national teams, both junior and senior, competing in world championships and FIS circuits.
  • His formative influence on generations of coaches who replicated his methodology, indirectly contributing to the titles and podiums won by his disciples in World Cups, world championships and Olympic Games.

These successes are not only reflected in numbers and medals, but also in the legacy of professionalism and technical excellence that Sailer established in American alpine skiing, revolutionising the way talent was identified, prepared and supported from the grassroots to the highest competitive level.

Sailer’s spirit — his tireless pursuit of excellence, his unvarnished honesty and his love of the sport — will continue to guide future generations of skiers. Because, as he demonstrated for more than seven decades, true success is not only found on the podium, but in the ability to inspire, teach and leave an indelible mark on those who share a passion for snow and mountains.