Just published: Shared Tracks: Skiing in Austria and Switzerland in Culture and Society
The next World Alpine Ski Championships will open on 4th February 2025 in Saalbach, Austria. Some 600 athletes from over 70 countries will compete for medals. Launched in 1931 by the International Ski Federation (FIS), the competition is held every two years and awards a prestigious title in each of the four Alpine disciplines (downhill, slalom, giant slalom and super-G). There is also a ranking by country. To date, Austria leads the way with a total of 309 medals (101 of them gold), ahead of Switzerland with 211 medals (72 gold), France (138/48) and Germany (120/35). In Saalbach, particular attention will once again be paid to the medal table. Given the results achieved in recent races, will the Swiss be able to beat the Austrians on home soil? Given the importance of Alpine skiing to both countries, which are known as “skiing nations”, this rivalry goes beyond the strictly sporting, as a glance at history shows.
Originating in Scandinavia at the end of the 19th century, skiing took root in both countries at the same time, in a variety of locations. Production and trade in ski equipment soon followed. Trained to ski during the First World War, soldiers in the mountain troops contributed to the spread of skiing among the population after their demobilization. Winter tourism continued to develop between the two world wars, and enjoyed a prodigious boom during the “Trente Glorieuses”. But there are differences. One, tragically, concerns the purges of Jewish sportsmen and women in Austria during the Nazi period. Another concerns the economic sector: while Swiss manufacturers (with the exception of Stöckli) gradually disappeared from the 1960s onwards, several Austrian competitors expanded and today rank among the world leaders in the field. This new book devoted to the history of skiing in Austria and Switzerland sheds new light on all these factors.
The result of a scientific symposium held in October 2023 at the Centre International d'Etude du Sport (CIES), Neuchâtel, and the Musée du ski - Le Boéchet, this book highlights not only the convergences and divergences but also the interrelationships in the history of skiing in Austria and Switzerland. A dozen contributions in English cover topics such as ski manufacture, ski instruction in schools, the organization of ski camps for young people, the practice of skiing in workers' associations, and the organization of the 1948 Winter Olympics in St. Moritz.
Skiing in Austria and Switzerland in Culture and Society, T. Busset & A. Praher, Éditions CIES.
The book is on sale for CHF 30 at the Musée du ski - Le Boéchet and on the CIES website.
