Disability skiing started around the Second World War because many soldiers got hurt. In Germany, Franz Wendel, an amputee who was missing his leg, used pair of crutches to make short skis. Sepp "Peppi" Zwicknagel is an Austrian veteran who was wounded by a hand grenade and lost his leg. Zwicknagel learned to ski on his own and then became a ski instructor. He worked at Kitzbühel and created a division of the Austrian Ski Association for disability skiers. By 1947, disability ski races were being held in Austria. Next, Ludwig Guttman helped make ski events for people with disabilities. In the United States, Gretchen Fraser started teaching skiing to amputees in the army hospitals. By the 1960s, ski groups for people with disabilities were being made. Disability skiing was only for people with amputations until 1968. In 1969, blind skier Jean Eymore began a skiing program in Aspen, Colorado for skiers who cannot see. Eymore was ski instructor before he lost his vision. The first international competition, the World Disabled Alpine Championships, was held in France in 1974.