Carina Stelzer

In the footsteps of the World Cup skiers – the training and race tracks of the stars of Ski amadé

Marcel Hirscher, Anna Veith, Max Franz, Hannes Reichelt, Bernadette Schild… What do these names have in common? They are Austrian’s elite skiers and the pride of the ÖSV. The athletes need a lot of good training days in order to optimally prepare for their races and for these they can always find the best conditions in Ski amadé.

Many resorts have a long-standing partnership with the ÖSV and other national teams which are characterised by their great success. In addition to providing preparation and training for races,several World Cup races also take place in the Ski amadé for which many spectators come from all over to be able to watch these spectacles live.

Race tracks

The highlight – the night race in Schladming
Every year and once again this year on the 26th of January 2021 for the 24th time, the best slalom skiers in the world gather and conquer the steep and icy downhill slope of Planai in Schladming. During the last floodlit spectacle in 2018, our local hero Marcel Hirscher won the race. Over 45,000 fans cheered on the living legend to his victory at the World Cup and turned the slope into a lion’s den.

Women’s night slalom in Flachau
On the 12th of January 2021, it is time again for the women’s night slalom in Flachau. For the 10th time, the best slalom skiers in the world race for the title of ‘Snow Space Salzburg Princess’ at the Hermann Maier FIS World Cup track in Snow Space Salzburg and simultaneously for the highest reward in the Alpine Ski World Cup for women.

Zauchensee
The women’s Alpine combined and Super G takes place every two years in Zauchensee. A special feature here is the enormously steep start of the slope, which at its steepest point is 70% and is one of the main reasons why it is so loved by the best speed-women in the world.

Training slopes

Reiteralm
Teams from different countries, but mainly the ÖSV women and men’s teams use the World Cup slopes to perfectly prepare themselves for the winter World Cup. The Reiteralm’s special highlight for many ski fans is that they can watch the ski stars during their training and possibly even get an autograph or a selfie with one of the stars. Did you know that in the space of 11 months, 5 World Cups were held here? That’s a world record!

Hauser Kaibling
For some years now, Hauser Kaibling has been making its slopes available for training for the elite skier’s pre-season. Thanks to the state-of-the-art snowmaking equipment, the German Skiing Association can especially look forward to the perfect conditions on the Hauser Kaibling.

Zauchensee
Thanks to the altitude of Zauchensee, its optimal conditions also offer great training possibilities for the national and international ski teams. Because of the many Euro-cup’s and FIS-races, Zauchensee is also known as a ‘grassroots-region’ in the alpine junior skiing division. Maybe when you next go for a ski in Ski amadé, you might see Marcel Hirscher or Anna Veith during their training when you pass the slope… ;-)

The women downhill in Zauchensee

Carina Stelzer

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