The hosts Rupert Stadler, Chairman of the Board of Management of AUDI AG, and Luca de Meo, Member of the Board of Management for Marketing and Sales, welcomed guests such as Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn, Chairman of the Board of Management of Volkswagen AG; fashion designer Gabriele Strehle; TV hosts Kai Pflaume and Johannes B. Kerner; actor Thomas Heinze; French male model Satya Oblette; the UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Ute-Henriette Ohoven; the violinist Vanessa Mae; and singer Vicky Leandros. Attendees from the world of sport included the “Streif” record winner Didier Cuche, former skiers Martina Ertl-Renz and Hansi Hinterseer; Audi DTM drivers Timo Scheider and Mattias Ekström; sports physician Dr. Hans-Wilhelm Müller-Wohlfahrt and the extreme sportsman Felix Baumgartner. The British musician James Blunt prompted a flurry of camera flashes on the red carpet.
The reception was followed by dinner for about 400 guests at the Tenne hotel, prepared by starred chef Jürgen Bartl. Event host and former professional skier Marco Büchel guided the guests through the evening and handed the microphone over from time to time to stars of the slope like Felix Neureuther, Marcel Hirscher and Ted Ligety, who offered entertaining accounts of their experiences on the legendary “Streif” ski run.
The evening culminated with the performance of James Blunt, whose songs, including his latest hit “Bonfire Heart”, “You’re Beautiful” and “1973“ kept the crowd’s spirits high.
Audi is not only the organizer of “Audi Night”, but is also a partner in the race at Hahnenkamm – for the 14th time already. The carmaker is once again making Kitzbühel the “Home of quattro” this year. One more testament to the “Streif”: During the party at “Zur Tenne”, Luca de Meo, Member of the Board of Management for Marketing and Sales, announced that Audi is extending its involvement with the Alpine World Cup in Kitzbühel by another four years, until 2018.