Hans_Spitzauer

Johann "Hans" Spitzauer (German pronunciation: [hans ˈʃpɪt͡saʊ̯ɐ] , born 1 March 1965) is an Austrian former sailor, who specialized in both Finn and Star classes. He was named the country's top Finn sailor in the first three editions of his Olympic career (1988, 1992, and 1996) and came closest to the medal haul in Atlanta 1996, finishing in fourth place. After missing out his Sydney 2000 bid, he moved into the Star class and eventually partnered with Andreas Hanakamp to compete at his fourth Olympics in Athens 2004 and with Christian Nehammer at his fifth in Beijing 2008. Outside the Games, Spitzauer was deemed one of the world's most successful Finn sailors in the early to mid-1990s, receiving a complete set of medals with one in each color (gold, silver, and bronze) at the Finn Gold Cup and the Finn European Championships, respectively.