Luca Hammerle Announces Retirement

Vorarlberg snowboard crosser Luca Hämmerle announces his retirement from competitive sport.

In April 2016, the Montafon native was crowned Junior World Champion. With his triumph at the Junior World Championships in April 2016 in Rogla (SLO), Luca Hämmerle made the leap into the Snowboardcross World Cup, where he finished in the top ten three times.

The Montafon native's best placing in the overall World Cup was 25th place in the 2019/20 season, and he finished last winter in 39th place. In the European Cup, the 27-year-old celebrated two victories and took five more podium places, and in the 2017/18 EC season, the brother of Olympic champion Alessandro Hämmerle finished second in the overall ranking.

After Luca Hämmerle had overcome two serious injuries (concussion in December 2019 in Cervinia/ITA, fracture of a transverse vertebral process in November 2021 in Secret Garden/CHN), he went into the last two seasons in top physical condition and accordingly confident.

"I felt better than ever during this time, but unfortunately that was not reflected in the results and was very frustrating. In the past few weeks I have had to acknowledge that the fire is no longer burning as much. The air is simply out, so I have decided to end my active career," explains Luca Hämmerle , who also represented the red-white-red SBX team at two world championships (36th place in Solitude/USA 2019, 17th place in Bakuriani/GEO 2023).

"The experiences I had on my journey as a snowboard crosser were extremely valuable. I wouldn't want to miss a single one of them. I will always remember the races at the home World Cup in Montafon. It was a childhood dream come true for me. It was also a privilege to be able to experience many unforgettable moments as an athlete together with my brothers Alessandro and Michael. I would like to thank my family, all my partners and sponsors and the ÖSV for their support, without which I would not have made it to the World Cup," emphasizes Hämmerle, who is switching to two other sporting disciplines as a hobby. He has started training with the Hochmontafon football team and has also obtained a golf license.