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Sports are widely practiced in Austria, both in professional and amateur competitions. The most popular sports are association football, alpine skiing and ice hockey.
Due to the mountainous terrain, alpine skiing is a prominent sport in Austria. Similar sports such as snowboarding and ski jumping are also widely popular, and Austrian athletes such as Annemarie Moser-Pröll, Hermann Maier, Toni Sailer and Marcel Hirscher are widely regarded as some of the greatest alpine skiers of all time. Austria has been the number one nation in alpine skiing and leading nation in ski jumping in the Winter Olympics, FIS Alpine World Ski Championships and FIS Ski Jumping World Cup. At the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2011, it took all five ski jumping gold medals. As of 2001, about a third of the 230 Olympic medals which had been won by Austrian sportspeople had been awarded in alpine skiing, and another 30 percent had been won in other winter sports, whilst a quarter of all golds at the Alpine Skiing World Championships had been won by Austrians. [1] The Winter Olympics were held in the town of Innsbruck in the years of 1964 and 1976. Success at the elite level also helps to promote ski tourism and related industries: ski tourism and equipment manufacturing account for five percent of the country's gross national product, with half of the world's alpine skis being made in Austria. Around 40 percent of the Austrian population takes part in alpine skiing. [1]
There are 12 professional ice hockey teams in the Austrian Hockey League, which also features one team each team from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy and Slovenia.
Bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton are also popular events, with a permanent track located in Igls, which hosted bobsleigh and luge competitions for the 1964 and 1976 Winter Olympics held in Innsbruck. The first Winter Youth Olympics in 2012 were held in Innsbruck as well. [2]
Football is the most popular sport in Austria, which is governed by the Austrian Football Association. [3] Austria was once among the most successful football playing nations on the European continent, placing fourth at the 1934 FIFA World Cup, third at the 1954 FIFA World Cup, and seventh at the 1978 FIFA World Cup. However, recently Austria has been much less internationally successful in this discipline; Austria has not qualified for a World Cup since 1998. Austria co-hosted the 2008 UEFA European Football Championship with Switzerland.
Notable tennis players include Thomas Muster, winner of the 1995 French Open singles tournament; Dominic Thiem, winner of the 2020 US Open men's singles and finalist of the 2018 and 2019 French Open men's singles and 2020 Australian Open men's singles tournaments; Jürgen Melzer, world number 11 in the 2010 ATP World Tour and winner of the 2010 Wimbledon and 2011 US Open doubles tournaments; Barbara Schett, number 8 in the 1999 WTA Tour singles rankings; and Barbara Paulus, world number 13 in the 1996 WTA Tour singles rankings.
Motorsport is the third most popular spectator sport in Austria (after skiing and football). [1] The Austrian Grand Prix is a Formula One race held in 1963, 1964, from 1970 to 1987, from 1997 to 2003 and since 2014. Several Austrian drivers have competed successfully in Formula One. Niki Lauda is a three-time champion (1975, 1977 and 1984) and seventh winningest driver with 25. Jochen Rindt was crowned 1970 champion, after being killed in practice for a race; he also won the 1965 24 Hours of Le Mans. Gerhard Berger ranked third in 1988 and 1994, and has collected 10 wins and 48 podiums.
The top two motorsport venues are Österreichring and Salzburgring. The former hosted the Austrian Grand Prix, the Austrian motorcycle Grand Prix, and the 1000 km Zeltweg endurance sports car race. The latter has also held the Austrian motorcycle Grand Prix, the Superbike World Championship, the European Formula Two Championship, and the top German series such as the Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft and the Super Tourenwagen Cup.
The country's prime basketball league is the Österreichische Basketball Bundesliga. Several of its teams have participated in European competitions.
Until the late 70s, Austria was one of Europe's main teams as it qualified for the EuroBasket six times. Since then, the team declined despite occasional strong showings at EuroBasket qualification games.
The most prominent Austrian basketball player today is Jakob Pöltl, who became the country's first NBA player in the 2016–17 season after having been selected by the Toronto Raptors in the first round of the 2016 NBA draft.
Austria is an emerging country for 3x3 basketball. [4]
The Austrian Football League (AFL) is the top level of american football in Austria founded in 1984, and considered one of the best leagues in Europe. Teams from Austria have won the European Football League championship the Eurobowl final many times. The Austrian national American Football team is ranked high in world and European rankings. American football in Austria is one of the more popular team sports for participation and spectators.
Austria is an active member of the WDSF and hosts many annual competitions such as Austrian Open and world championships. Austrian dance athletes are noticeable in the world.
Popularizing DanceSport, Austrian television holds annual Dancing Stars show that enjoys its 9th season as of 2014.
Austria featured national teams in beach volleyball that competed at the 2018–2020 CEV Beach Volleyball Continental Cup in both the women's and the men's sections. [7]
Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow. Variations of purpose include basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS).
Winter sports or winter activities are competitive sports or non-competitive recreational activities which are played on snow or ice. Most are variations of skiing, ice skating and sledding. Traditionally, such games were only played in cold areas during winter, but artificial snow and artificial ice allow more flexibility. Playing areas and fields consist of either snow or ice.
The 1964 Winter Olympics, officially known as the IX Olympic Winter Games and commonly known as Innsbruck 1964, was a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in Innsbruck, Austria, from January 29 to February 9, 1964. The city was already an Olympic candidate, unsuccessfully bidding to host the 1960 Games. Innsbruck won the 1964 Games bid, defeating the cities of Calgary in Canada and Lahti in Finland. The sports venues, many of which were built for the Games, were located within a radius of 20 km (12 mi) around Innsbruck. The Games included 1,091 athletes from 36 nations, which was a record for the Winter Games at the time. Athletes participated in six sports and ten disciplines which bring together a total of thirty-four official events, seven more than the 1960 Winter Olympic Games. The luge made its debut on the Olympic program. Three Asian nations made their Winter Games debut: North Korea, India and Mongolia.
The 1976 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XII Olympic Winter Games and commonly known as Innsbruck 1976, were a winter multi-sport event celebrated in Innsbruck, Austria, from February 4 to 15, 1976. The games were awarded to Innsbruck after Denver, the original host city, withdrew in 1972. This was the second time the Tyrolean capital had hosted the Winter Olympics, having first done so in 1964.
Sport is considered a national pastime in Sweden, and about half of the population actively takes part in sports activities. The most important all-embracing organisations for sports in Sweden are the Swedish Sports Confederation, and the Swedish Olympic Committee. In total over 2 million people are members of a sports club.
Alpine Skiing at the 1976 Winter Olympics consisted of six alpine skiing events. Similar to the 1964 games, the men's downhill was held on Patscherkofel, the other five events at Axamer Lizum. The events began on 5 February and ended on 13 February 1976.
Thomas Morgenstern is an Austrian former ski jumper who competed from 2002 to 2014. He is one of the most successful ski jumpers of all time, having won the World Cup overall title twice with 23 individual wins, the Four Hills Tournament and the Nordic Tournament once each, eight World Championship gold medals, and three Winter Olympic gold medals.
Sportin Germany is an important part of German culture and their society. In 2006 about 28 million people were members of the more than 87.000 sport clubs in Germany. Almost all sports clubs are represented by the German Olympic Sports Federation.
Sport is considered a national pastime in Finland and many Finns visit different sporting events regularly. Pesäpallo is the national sport of Finland, although the most popular forms of sport in terms of television viewers and media coverage are ice hockey and Formula One. In spectator attendance, harness racing comes right after ice hockey in popularity.
Sport in France plays an important role in French society, which is reflected in its popularity among the French people and the nation's strong sporting history. Various types of sports are played and followed in France, notably cycling, football, and handball, which has earned France eight victories in world championships and five Olympic medals. France is also the four-time European champion of handball.
Sport in Croatia has significant role in Croatian culture, and many local sports clubs as well as the Croatian national squads enjoy strong followings in the country. The most enduring sport by far in Croatia is football, and is played on amateur and professional levels amongst all age groups across the entire country. Several other major team sports are handball, basketball and water polo, with clubs in all parts of Croatia. Ice hockey is another popular team sport, namely in the Croatian interior. The most popular individual sports in Croatia are tennis, alpine skiing, and swimming, and to some extent table tennis and chess. Various amateur sport games are popular in Croatia, notably picigin.
ČT Sport is a Czech national sports channel, operated by Czech Television.
Sports play a significant part in the life of many Czechs who are generally loyal supporters of their favourite teams or individuals.
The Italian Winter Sports Federation, is the winter sports federation for Italy. Part of the Italian National Olympic Committee (CONI), it deals with all federations conducting sports for the Winter Olympics, including skiing, skating, biathlon, bobsleigh, and luge.
Evelyn Amie "Evie" Pinching was a British alpine skier, born in Norwich, who won the 1936 women's downhill and combined events in the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships in Innsbruck, Austria. She also competed in the 1936 Winter Olympics, where she finished ninth in the alpine skiing combined. In 1937 Pinching won the Hahnenkamm downhill in Kitzbühel.
In Switzerland, most of the people have a regular sport activity and one in four is an active member of a sports club. The most important all-embracing organisations for sports in Switzerland are the Federal Office of Sport, and the Swiss Olympic Committee.
For the 1964 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria, a total of eight sports venues were used. Luge made its debut at these games, but were marred by the death of a British slider two weeks prior to the Games. A second ski jumping event debuted and the best two out of three jumps were used in both events for the only time in the history of the Winter Olympics. All eight venues would be used again when the Winter Games returned to Innsbruck twelve years later though the venues would undergo renovations in time for the 1976 Games.
For the 1972 Winter Olympics in Sapporo, Japan, a total of twelve sports venues were used. A thirteenth venue which was a reserved luge course was constructed, but never used in actual competition. Construction on all of the venues used took place between 1968 and early 1971 in time for the test events. The Tsuskisamu Indoor Skating Rink was not completed until late 1971 or early 1972 because the number of teams scheduled to compete at the 1972 Games was not known. At the actual luge venue used, a malfunctioning starting gate during the first run led to the results being cancelled and rerun being ordered. The results of this event led to the only tie in Olympic luge history. The ski jumps at Miyanomori and Okurayama served as host venues for the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships thirty-five years later.
Sport in Yugoslavia had a significant role in its culture and society. Team sports such as football, basketball, handball, volleyball and water polo had the biggest popularity. Of individual sports the most popular were tennis, athletics, alpine skiing, swimming, table tennis, ski jumping and chess. Yugoslavia made its debut at the Summer Olympics in 1920. Until its break up in 1992, it competed in 16 Summer and 14 Winter Olympic games and won a total of 87 medals in various summer and winter sports. Yugoslavia hosted its first and the only Winter Olympic games in 1984 in Sarajevo when Jure Franko won country's first Winter Olympic medal, silver in alpine skiing.
Media related to Sports in Austria at Wikimedia Commons
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