Since the retirement of legendary German skier Gerd Schoenfelder, Gauthier-Manuel has strengthened his position as the best skier in the Standing class.
He started skiing in 2006 and won two silver medals and a bronze at his first Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver in 2010, an event Schoenfelder won four golds and a silver at.
If Schoenfelder was the headline act in Vancouver, the Frenchman ensured he was the name on everyone's lips at the 2011 IPC Alpine Skiing World Championships in Sestriere, Italy. Gauthier-Manuel was in sensational form taking home four gold medals and two silvers, an achievement that may have played a part in the retirement of his German rival.
Gauthier-Manuel will be hoping to retain his world titles in La Molina, Spain in February 2013 before heading to Sochi a year later aiming to land his first ever Paralympic Winter Games gold medal.
