Niklas Mair is causing a stir. © private

In a spectacular sport: South Tyrolean gets a taste of the World Championship atmosphere

Niklas Mair from Olang participated in a world championship last weekend – in freestyle trampoline. How did that come about?

August 27, 2026

From: det

Niklas Mair won't soon forget last weekend. The 18-year-old from Olang became the first South Tyrolean ever to participate in the Freestyle Trampoline World Championships. But how does a young man from the Puster Valley get involved in this new, spectacular sport? And how does it even work?

“I’ve always been jumping around, ever since I was little,” Mair told SportNews. “I used to post videos on Instagram, and about a year ago a friend from Olang contacted me to ask if I’d like to go training with him in Austria. There’s a large hall in the Stubai Valley where you can train. So I went there, and since then I’ve been commuting there once a week.”

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The effort paid off. Mair qualified for the World Championships in Porto, Portugal. Last weekend, the time had come, and he flew to Portugal with his mother for the big event. "Unfortunately, I didn't make it to the semi-finals, but I'm still relatively satisfied. In the end, I finished in 38th place out of 75 participants," said the 18-year-old.

The goal is the final.

It's definitely a spectacular sport that Niklas Mair practices. He and his colleagues jump up to six meters high. The key moment of the performance is a sequence of up to five consecutive tricks. The athletes are judged by a three-person jury. "I really enjoy it. My goal is to reach the finals at a world championship sooner or later," says Niklas Mair.