Aline Bock, Snowboard Freeride World Champion 2010

Even before she became the 2010 world champion, 29-year old Aline Bock was one of the best freeride snowboarders in the world.

Aline Bock was born in Gießen and grew up in Überlingen on Lake Constance. Her father, a dentist and passionate winter sportsman, gave her a snowboard for Christmas at the age of 13. Every weekend he took her and her two elder siblings with him into the mountains. At the age of 15, Bock started competing regularly in snowboarding competitions. She won the German junior halfpipe championships twice but was frustrated by her lack of international success in the event.  In 2008, she switched to freeride snowboarding. Success in the event depends more on experience off-piste, which often eludes the youngest freestylers. In 2010, Bock won the World Freeride Tour, becoming world champion in the discipline. But she's no stranger to the sport's dangers. In one serious fall, Bock narrowly escaped becoming paralyzed. When she's not competing, Bock lives in Innsbruck, where she's gained a degree in Sports Management. She's currently working temporarily as junior manager of two snowboard teams.