The Fédération Internationale de Ski is the world's highest governing body for international winter sports. Founded in Chamonix on 2 February 1924, it is responsible for the Olympic disciplines of Alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, ski jumping, Nordic combined, freestyle skiing and snowboarding. The FIS is also responsible for setting the international competition rules. The organization now has a membership of 118 national ski associations and is based in Oberhofen am Thunersee, Switzerland.
The FIS Alpine Ski World Cup is the top international circuit of alpine skiing competitions, launched in 1966 by a group of ski racing friends and experts which included French journalist Serge Lang and the alpine ski team directors from France and the USA. It was soon backed by International Ski Federation president Marc Hodler during the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships 1966 at Portillo, Chile, and became an official FIS event in the spring of 1967 after the FIS Congress at Beirut, Lebanon. The first World Cup ski race was held in Berchtesgaden, West Germany, on January 5, 1967. Jean-Claude Killy of France and Nancy Greene of Canada were the overall winners for the first two seasons.
Anton Engelbert "Toni" Sailer was an Austrian alpine ski racer, considered among the best in the sport. At age 20, he won all three gold medals in alpine skiing at the 1956 Winter Olympics. He nearly duplicated the feat at the 1958 World Championships with two golds and a silver. He also won world titles both years in the combined, then a "paper" race, but awarded with medals by the International Ski Federation (FIS).
The 1964 Winter Olympics, officially known as the IX Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in Innsbruck, Austria, from January 29 to February 9, 1964. The Games included 1091 athletes from 36 nations, and the Olympic Torch was carried by Joseph Rieder, a former alpine skier who had participated in the 1956 Winter Olympics.
Downhill is a form of alpine skiing competition. Whereas the other alpine skiing events emphasize turning and technique, downhill emphasizes "the six components of technique, courage, speed, risk, physical condition and judgement", according to the FIS "International Ski Competition Rules (ICR)". Speeds of up to 130 km/h (81 mph) are common in international competition. Athletes must have an aerodynamically efficient tuck position to minimize drag and increase speed.
Alpine skiing at the 1964 Winter Olympics consisted of six events, held near Innsbruck, Austria, from January 30 to February 8, 1964.
A piste is a marked ski run or path down a mountain for snow skiing, snowboarding, or other mountain sports.
Thomas Morgenstern is an Austrian former ski jumper who competed from 2002 to 2014. He is one of the sport's most successful contemporary athletes, having won the World Cup overall title twice, the Four Hills Tournament and the Nordic Tournament once each, eight World Championship gold medals, and three Winter Olympic gold medals.
Andreas "Andi" Goldberger is an Austrian former ski jumper who competed from 1991 to 2005.
Markus Gandler is former cross country skier from Austria who competed from the late 1980s to the late 1990s.
Ernst Vettori is an Austrian former ski jumper.
The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 1999 took place February 19–28, 1999 in Ramsau am Dachstein, Austria. The large hill ski jumping events took place at the Paul-Ausserleitner-Schanze in Bischofshofen. The 7.5 km Nordic combined sprint event debuted at these championships.
Austria competed at the 1956 Winter Olympics in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy.
Austria competed at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
Gregor Schlierenzauer is an Austrian ski jumper. He is one of the sport's most successful athletes of all time, having won the Ski Jumping World Cup overall title, the Four Hills Tournament, and Nordic Tournament twice each; the Ski Flying World Cup overall title three times; as well as four medals at the Winter Olympics, twelve at the Ski Jumping World Championships, and five at the Ski Flying World Championships.
Sport is widely practiced in Austria both in professional and amateur competitions. The most popular sports are association football, alpine skiing and ice hockey.
The 41st FIS Nordic World Ski Championships were held from 20 February to 3 March 2019 in Seefeld in Tirol, Tyrol, Austria. It was the second time Seefeld in Tirol hosted the world championships, the event having been hosted there previously in 1985.
The International Ski Federation (FIS) Alpine World Cup tour is the premier circuit for alpine skiing competition. The inaugural season launched in January 1967, and the 2016 season marked the 50th consecutive year for the FIS. This World Cup season began on 24 October 2015, in Sölden, Austria, and concluded in Saint Moritz, Switzerland on 20 March 2016. The World Ski Championship, a biennial event, did not interrupt this competitive season, and the upcoming World Championships were held Saint Moritz, Switzerland in February 2017
The International Ski Federation (FIS) Alpine Skiing World Cup is the premier circuit for alpine skiing competition. The inaugural FIS World Cup season launched 52 years ago in January 1967 and this 51st season began on 22 October 2016 in Sölden, Austria, and concluded in the United States at Aspen on 19 March 2017. The biennial World Championships interrupted the tour in early February in Saint Moritz, Switzerland. The season-ending finals in March were held in North America for the first time in two decades: the last finale in the U.S. was in 1997 at Vail.
