Thomas Fanara


Thomas Fanara is a former French World Cup alpine ski racer.
Born in Annecy, Haute-Savoie, Fanara specialised in giant slalom; his one and only win came in March 2016 at the giant slalom finals in St. Moritz, Switzerland. He is the oldest racer to reach a World Cup podium in giant slalom, and competed for France at three Winter Olympics and six World Championships. He retired from competition at the end of the 2018-19 season.

World Cup

Fanara has started over 70 World cup races, mostly in giant slalom but also in slalom, and has been on the podium fourteen times. For some time he held the record for most World Cup podium finishes without a win until his victory at the World Cup finals in St. Moritz in 2016. In December 2007, he fell and hurt himself in the second run after winning the first run of a race in Bad Kleinkirchheim, but finished. Two years later in December 2009, Fanara incurred a season-ending injury to his left knee after a spectacular fall during a race in Beaver Creek, two months before the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Following his World Cup win in St. Moritz, Fanara suffered an injury which kept him out of competition for the 2016-17 season. However, he subsequently made a successful return, taking a number of podium finished in his final season.

Season standings

Race podiums

SeasonDateLocationDisciplinePlace
201119 Dec 2010 Alta Badia, ItalyGiant slalom3rd
20118 Jan 2011 Adelboden, SwitzerlandGiant slalom3rd
201316 Dec 2012 Alta Badia, ItalyGiant slalom3rd
201414 Dec 2013 Val-d'Isère, France Giant slalom 2nd
201412 Jan 2014 Adelboden, SwitzerlandGiant slalom2nd
201521 Dec 2014 Alta Badia, ItalyGiant slalom3rd
201514 Mar 2015 Kranjska Gora, SloveniaGiant slalom3rd
201521 Mar 2015 Méribel, FranceGiant slalom3rd
201625 Oct 2015 Sölden, AustriaGiant slalom2nd
201626 Feb 2016 Hinterstoder, AustriaGiant slalom3rd
201619 Mar 2016 St. Moritz, SwitzerlandGiant slalom1st
201916 Dec 2018 Alta Badia, ItalyGiant slalom2nd
201912 Jan 2019 Adelboden, SwitzerlandGiant slalom3rd
201924 Feb 2019 Bansko, BulgariaGiant slalom3rd

World championships

Fanara has competed in four World Championships in the giant slalom discipline. In 2007 in Åre, Sweden, he finished 16th, but on home country snow in 2009 in Val-d'Isère, France, he did not finish the first run. At Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, he finished sixth in 2011 but failed to finish the first run in 2013 at Schladming, Austria. Fanara participated in the team event in 2011 at Garmisch and earned a gold medal.

Olympics

At the Winter Olympics, Fanara did not finish the first run of the giant slalom in 2006 and was injured two months prior the 2010 Games and did not compete.

National championships

Fanara reached the podium of French national championships four times, all in giant slalom. In 2005 he was third; in 2006 he was second; and he won in 2007 and 2009.