James Couttet

James Couttet competed at the 1948 and 1952 Winter Olympics in alpine skiing, but was also a ski jumper at the St. Moritz 1948 Games. He won a silver medal in slalom in 1948, also adding a World Championship bronze medal in the combined in 1948. Couttet was a champion before World War II, winning a gold medal in downhill at the 1938 World Championships at Engelberg. At the 1950 Worlds in Aspen, Colorado, he added a silver in downhill and a bronze in the giant slalom to his trophy case. Couttet was less successful at the 1952 Winter Olympics, his best finish a sixth in the slalom. He retired in 1955 and became coach of the French alpine ski team for the 1956 Winter Olympics. He later helped design and build ski lifts. Couttet was the cousin of another Olympian, Lucienne Schmidt-Couttet.