Competing for West Germany in the 1980s, Kiehl gained her first World Cup victory in a Super-G competition in March 1984 in Quebec.[1] She won season titles in giant slalom In 1985 and in Super-G in 1986. The major highlight in Kiehl's career came at the 1988 Olympics in Calgary, when she won a gold medal in the downhill, ahead of Brigitte Oertli and Karen Percy.[2]
Kiehl retired from competitions after the Calgary Olympics, aged 23.