Vinko Bogataj - wikipedia Vinko Bogataj Vinko Bogataj Country Yugoslavia 1948 ( age 68 -- 69 ) Brezovica, Radovljica, Yugoslavia ( now Slovenia ) Vinko Bogataj ( Slovenian : / ˈʋiːŋko bɔɡaˈtaj / ; born 1948 ) is a Slovenian former ski jumper. Footage of him crashing featured on ABC 's Wide World of Sports representing the Agony of Defeat. Contents 1 Agony of Defeat jump 2 Later life 3 See also 4 References 5 External links Agony of defeat jump Bogataj competed as a Yugoslav entrant at the ski flying event in Oberstdorf, West Germany ( now Germany ) on 7 March 1970. A light snow had begun falling at the start of the competition, and by the time Bogataj was ready for his third jump on the Heini Klopfer hill, the snow had become quite heavy. Midway down the inrun for his jump, Bogataj realised that the conditions had made the ramp too fast. He attempted to lower his center of gravity and stop his jump, but instead lost his balance completely and rocketed out of control off the end of the inrun, tumbling and flipping wildly, and crashing through a light retaining fence near a crowd of spectators before coming to a halt. Bogataj suffered a mild concussion and a broken ankle. A film crew from Wide World of Sports was recording the event in which Bogataj crashed. The show featured an opening narration by host Jim McKay over a montage of sports clips, and co-ordinating producer Dennis Lewin inserted the footage of the crash to coincide with the words ``... and the agony of defeat. '' Throughout the show 's long history, various images were used for the other parts of the narration, including for `` The thrill of victory... '', which directly preceded the above phrase and was often accompanied by images of the celebrating team at the most recent Super Bowl or World Cup. But after that point, the `` agony of defeat '' was always illustrated by Bogataj 's failed jump. Later on, other clips were added to the `` agony of defeat '', but Bogataj 's crash was always featured and always the first played. The melodrama of the narration -- which became a catchphrase in the US -- transformed the uncredited ski jumper into an American icon of bad luck and misfortune. Meanwhile, having retired to his quiet, private life in Slovenia, Bogataj was unaware of his celebrity, and so was surprised to be asked to attend the 20th anniversary celebration for Wide World of Sports in 1981. He received the loudest ovation of any athlete introduced at the gala, and attendees such as Muhammad Ali asked him for his autograph. Later life Bogataj returned to ski jumping in 1971 but never duplicated the success he had before the crash and retired from the sport competitively, save for occasional senior competitions thereafter. During his career, his best career finish was 57th in the individual normal hill competition in Bischofshofen in 1969 during that year 's Four Hills Tournament. Bogataj became a ski instructor, coaching the 1991 World Champion Slovenian ski jumper Franci Petek. He supplements his income by painting and has also worked as a forklift operator at a factory, Veriga Lesce. His paintings have won awards and been exhibited in both Europe and the U.S. He also enjoys wood carving. Bogataj resides in his hometown of Lesce, Slovenia. He is married and has two daughters. See also List of ski flying accidents References ^ Jump up to : `` ABC Wide World Classic : The Agony of Defeat '' on YouTube. Retrieved on 2011 - 04 - 11. ^ Jump up to : Neumann, Thomas ( 2016 - 08 - 15 ). `` Whatever happened to ' agony of defeat ' ski jumper ? ''. ESPN.com. Retrieved 2016 - 08 - 15. External links Vinko Bogataj at the International Ski Federation One of Bogataj 's paintings, `` Rainy Day '' Real Clear Sports ' description of the crash ABC 's Wide World of Sports Hosts Becky Dixon Frank Gifford Jim McKay Julie Moran Robin Roberts John Saunders Other key personnel Roone Arledge Dick Ebersol Chet Forte Charles Fox Roger Goodman Bob Goodrich Chuck Howard Edd Kalehoff Don Ohlmeyer Stanley Ralph Ross Edgar Scherick Events American Football League All - Star Game Championship Game Arena Bowl Boxing The Super Fight Video game College Basketball NCAA Men 's Final Four FIFA World Cup Golf ( announcers ) Open Championship PGA Championship U.S. Open Grey Cup IndyCar Series Indianapolis 500 Little League World Series ( announcers ) Championship Game Major League Baseball ( announcers ) Major League Soccer MLS Cup NASCAR ( history ) Daytona 500 National Basketball Association ( announcers ) All - Star Game NBA Finals North American Soccer League Pro Bowl Thoroughbred Racing ( history ) Belmont Stakes Kentucky Derby Preakness Stakes X Games Related articles The American Sportsman Battle of the Network Stars Vinko Bogataj ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex Evel Knievel Superstars Longest - running US TV series Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Vinko_Bogataj&oldid=799065908 '' Categories : 1948 births Living people Slovenian painters Slovenian male painters Slovenian male ski jumpers Wide World of Sports ( U.S. TV series ) People from the Municipality of Radovljica Hidden categories : FIS ski jumper ID same as Wikidata Talk Contents About Wikipedia Deutsch Hrvatski Norsk Edit links This page was last edited on 5 September 2017, at 12 : 29. 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Question: who was the skier in the agony of defeat
Answer: Vinko Bogataj