( CNN ) -- He is one of the greatest skiers of all time , the winner of every major prize on offer , but when Alberto Tomba looks back on his legendary career he feels a pang of regret . `` La Bomba '' called it quits at the end of the 1998 season , aged 31 , having won three Olympic gold medals , two world championship titles and 50 World Cup races . His final victory in the slalom at the World Cup Finals in Crans Montana of 1998 meant the Italian established a record , as yet unbroken , of being the only male skier to win at least one race per year for 11 straight seasons . Tomba 's farewell appearance in the Winter Olympics in Nagano in 1998 ended in a rare failure but , after watching the next two as a frustrated spectator , he came to the conclusion he had stopped racing prematurely . `` I was watching Salt Lake City 2002 , Torino 2006 , and after Torino I said , 'Oh , I stopped skiing too early , I was too young , I was 31 , ' `` he told CNN 's Alpine Edge series . `` I may feel in good shape but now I 'm 46 and what I can do ? It 's too late . '' It is debatable whether Tomba might have added to his victories , but he can reflect on leaving an indelible mark on his sport -- earning the adulation of fans not just in his home country , but the world over . His flamboyant style on the slopes was matched by a reputation for fast living off piste , but Tomba insists it was exaggerated . `` No , no no -- only half is true ! All the time they invented it , just for the press ... for fun . To provoke me also ! '' Current World Cup star Didier Cuche also believes Tomba rather cleverly maintained the image , but remained a very serious competitor at heart . `` I hear that he went to sleep really early , got up at 2 o'clock in the night , went out for an hour and then went to bed again ... he was playing a little bit with that , '' the Swiss skier told CNN . The longevity of Tomba 's career is testament to his ability and the hard work he put in , scoring his first World Cup victory in 1987 when he beat his great idol , Ingemar Stenmark of Sweden . Two gold medals at the 1988 Calgary Olympics catapulted him to world stardom and he successfully defended his giant slalom crown in the 1992 Winter Games in Albertville . 1995 was to prove Tomba 's best season on the World Cup circuit , winning 11 races and claiming the famous Crystal Globe as overall champion . A combination of circumstances had prevented Tomba from claiming a world championship title , but he put that right in 1996 with double gold . It remains the highlight of a career full of highlights for Tomba , now the patron of an Italian Winter Sports Federation project which targets youngsters who will be looking to follow in his giant footsteps . `` I think it was in Sierra Nevada , my world championships , I won two gold in two days . It was amazing , also the weather , the climate -- everything was perfect , '' he recalled . Tomba returned home to a rapturous welcome . `` I remember when I flew back to Italy , everybody expects Alberto at Bologna Airport , but I fly back to Parma because it was full , many people , 20,000 people -- that was amazing . '' Tomba was famous for his daring charges in the deciding second runs of his races , often making up large deficits from the first leg to storm to victory . For his second gold in the giant slalom in Sierra Nevada he made up 0.81 seconds on the first-leg leader to top the podium . Fellow ski legend Franz Klammer told CNN that was typical of Tomba 's style . `` The way he skied , he was so light even though he was a big guy , he was so light on the skis , smooth and he could pull it off -- even though if the first run was not that great , he could really do it on the second run , '' the Austrian said .
Alberto Tomba won three Olympic gold medals during his glittering skiing career . The Italian legend also claimed two world titles and 50 World Cup wins . Tells CNN his one regret was quitting too early in 1998 . TL;DR Former U.S. ski champion Lindsey Vonn is the first American to win an individual medal at Winter Olympics since 1932.