Sara Renner (born April 10, 1976) is a Canadian former cross-country skier who competed from 1994 to 2010. With Beckie Scott, she won the silver medal in the team sprint event at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin and earned her best individual finish of eight in the 10 km classical event in those same games. She was born in Golden, British Columbia.
2006 Winter Olympics
Norwegian coach Bjørnar Håkensmoen gave Sara Renner a ski pole after hers was broken when a competitor stepped on it during the cross-country team sprint at the 2006 Winter Olympics. Norway's athlete ended up fourth, implying that this selfless act of sportsmanship may well have cost the Norwegian team a medal.Håkensmoen assists Renner. Renner gave Håkensmoen a bottle of wine as a thank you, while other Canadians responded with phone calls and letters to the Norwegian Embassy and sent 7,400 cans of maple syrup to Håkensmoen. The incident was immortalized in a 2010 Winter Olympics television commercial.
Retirement She announced her retirement in Vancouver following her finish in the Women's 30 km, Mass Start event. She said: "I just left everything out there today," Renner said after carrying her three-year-old daughter, Aria, in her arms through a series of TV interviews. "It was a beautiful race in the pouring rain — quite the way to go out. To hear everyone cheering for me, it was absolutely inspiring."
Cross-country skiing results All results are sourced from the International Ski Federation (FIS).
Olympic Games 1 medal – (1 silver) Year Age 5 km 10 km 15 km Pursuit 30 km Sprint 4 × 5 km relay Team sprint 1998 21 74 — 64 54 16 2002 25 13 — 17 9 8 2006 29 8 16 — 16 10 Silver 2010 33 — 10 15 34 — 7
World Championships 1 medal – (1 bronze) Year Age 5 km 10 km 15 km Pursuit 30 km Sprint 4 × 5 km relay Team sprint 1997 20 61 58 54 14 2001 24 37 — 37 386 2003 26 16 — 17 12 7 — 2005 28 — 22 — Bronze — 10 2009 32 9 21 — — 6
a. Cancelled due to extremely cold weather.
World Cup Season standings Season Age Discipline standingsSki Tour standingsOverallDistanceLong DistanceMiddle DistanceSprintTour deSkiWorld CupFinal 1996 19 1997 20 — 1998 21 — 2000 23 — — 2001 24 63 54 2002 25 47 30 2003 26 35 21 2004 27 28 33 23 2005 28 26 35 14 2006 29 10 15 11 2008 31 46 36 43 — — 2009 32 22 18 45 15 31 2010 33 39 40 41 16 —
Individual podiums 4 podiums – (4 ) No. Season Date Location Race Level Place1 2005–06 11 December 2005 Vernon, Canada 1.3 km Sprint F World Cup 3rd2 5 February 2006 Davos, Switzerland 10 km Individual C World Cup 2nd3 7 March 2006 Borlänge, Sweden 0.75 km Sprint F World Cup 3rd4 2009–10 6 February 2010 Canmore, Canada 1.45 km Sprint C World Cup 3rd
Team podiums
2 podiums – (1 , 1 )
No. Season Date Location Race Level Place Teammate(s)1 2000–01 13 January 2001 Soldier Hollow, United States 4 × 5 km Relay C/F World Cup 2nd Thériault / Scott / Fortier2 2005–06 18 December 2005 Canmore, Canada 6 × 1.2 km Team Sprint C World Cup 2nd Scott
Personal life Renner grew up at remote Mount Assiniboine Lodge, the oldest backcountry ski lodge in the Canadian Rockies, located southwest of Banff and Canmore, Alberta, just across the British Columbia provincial border. Her parents ran the high-altitude lodge for three decades, and she credits her youth there for her skiing success.
In 2001 Renner posed nude in a calendar called "Nordic Nudes" to help raise money for the Canadian women's Nordic ski team. Teammates Beckie Scott, Milaine Thériault, Jaime Fortier and sister Amanda Fortier also posed nude for the calendar.
Renner is married to retired Italian-Canadian alpine skier Thomas Grandi. Grandi had family support out for himself and his wife during the Turin Olympics.
On September 18, 2006, Renner announced that she was taking the year off to have a baby with husband Thomas Grandi. Renner came back after her baby was born, and lead the women's team to Vancouver 2010.
On February 2, 2007, Renner gave birth to a girl named Aria at a hospital in Banff, Alberta. She and Grandi live in Canmore, Alberta.FIS Newsflash 143. September 5, 2007.
Notes
References
Biography Cross Country Canada – Canada's Cross Country Ski Program CBC Athlete Bio