Baby joy in Austria's ski family.

In Austria: A real ski baby is here

There is good news from Austria’s ski family: a former world-class athlete has become a mother.

February 24rd 2025

From: det

The ski season is approaching its final stretch – and these final weeks of the World Cup promise a lot of excitement and spectacle, after all, nothing less than the crystal globes are at stake. It wasn't long ago that Bernadette Schild was right in the middle of all this hustle and bustle. The Austrian was one of the slalom elite in the World Cup for years.

In the meantime, however, priorities have shifted. And so the younger sister of slalom dominator Marlies Schild has now retired from skiing - and was able to enjoy a very special "success". Bernadette became a mother for the second time. The 35-year-old announced this in a sweet post on social media.

Check out this post on Instagram

A post shared by BERNADETTE SCHILD (@bernadetteschild)

"And suddenly there are four of us," Schild wrote alongside some cute baby photos and also revealed the name of the new arrival: "Welcome, little Rafael." Her first-born son Samuel (born in 2022) has now gained a little brother. Schild's husband Armin Wierer was also happy for Bernadette and Samuel. He used to be the slalom skier's coach and has been married to her since 2021. Now their shared family happiness is perfect.

Was a slalom ace: Bernadette Schild. © APA/afp / JOE KLAMAR

The youngsters will certainly not be lacking in skiing genes. Dad is a trainer, mom is a successful ski racer who has been on the World Cup podium seven times in her career - it almost doesn't get any better than that. Austria's skiing family is happy for Bernadette Schild, as the many warm comments under the post prove. Among others, former skier Philipp Schörghofer and ski jumping legend Gregor Schlierenzauer congratulated her.