Wonder whatever happened to the guy

[Montagnard]

That epitomized “the agony of defeat” as he skied off the side of the ski jump? His accident was shown over and over again on the opening of ABC’s Wide World of Sports.

[Blue-Jay]

1. Funny how nobody remembers the "Thrill of Victory" person.

I sure don't, but I'll never forget the "Agony of Defeat" guy.

[Montagnard]

2. You must admit that was spectacular defeat

OUCH!


Who was the Thrill of Victory?

[WolverineDG]

12. They kept changing that one

but the "agony of defeat" was always the same.

dg

[ScreamingMeemie]

3. Vinko Bogataj...

http://www.weht.net/WEHT/Vinko_Bogataj.html

At last writing, Vinko Bogataj lived in Lesce, Slovenia, in the northern part of the former Yugoslavia, with his wife and two daughters. He drives a forklift in a factory that manufactures anchor chains, does some coaching and still jumps in senior competitions.

**Amazingly he only suffered a concussion in that accident.

[StaggerLee]

8. How do you say WTFFFFFFFFFFFF!!!!!!!

In slavik?

:shrug:

[ScreamingMeemie]

10. I was amazed that he still competes on the senior's circuit,

:hi: :wtf: is right. I bet he got more than a few bells rung.

[StaggerLee]

11. Hey MrsGrumpy!

Amazing indeed. That was one hell of a wipeout.

:hi:

[Redstone]

13. I thought he broke his ankle too?

Redstone

[Bunny]

4. Here you go:

http://ask.yahoo.com/20060213.html

SNIP
In the hierarchy of skiing accidents, there are spills, there are falls, and there are catastrophic wipeouts. "The agony of defeat" was definitely a catastrophic wipeout. For years, ABC's "Wide World of Sports" showcased the crash during its introduction:

Spanning the globe to bring you the constant variety of sport! The thrill of victory...and the agony of defeat! The human drama of athletic competition! This is ABC's Wide World of Sports!
The agonized athlete was a Slovene ski jumper by the name of Vinko Bogataj. A respected jumper and a fierce competitor, Bogataj's fate took a turn for the worse at the World Ski Flying Championships in 1970. Midway through his third run, Bogataj felt he was going too fast and tried to slow down. Unfortunately, he lost his balance and tumbled spectacularly over the side of the ramp. Bogataj suffered only a concussion, though apparently he never again jumped with quite the same "abandon." Understandable, if you ask us.

An interesting side note: Bogataj lived behind the Iron Curtain. As a result, he had no idea how infamous his crash had become in the United States. So it was with great confusion that he accepted an invitation to attend ABC's "Wide World of Sports" anniversary show. Once there, he found himself hounded by fans (including Muhammad Ali) who wanted to shake hands with "the agony of defeat." We call that a minor victory.
SNIP

[Montagnard]

5. That is an interesting story

for years when WWofSports came on I would squench up my eyes during the opening........

[eyepaddle]

7. Thanks for finding that!

I had forgotten the guy's name. I knew he wasn't really seriously hurt in that fall, but ooooowas it ever dramatic...do you suppose somebody has that video posted?

[Archae]

6. I have "the agony of de feet..."

If I stand for too long... :D

[TheMightyFavog]

9. Or when I take off my boots.

End of Line.