Hahnenkamm: A myth and its history

The history of the Hahnenkamm races begins in 1931, but its origins go back much further. Ski races were held in Kitzbühel as early as the 1890s. The key pioneer of the then emerging sport in the Gamsstadt was Franz Reisch (1863-1920). In 1902 a winter sports association was founded, which was renamed the winter sports club in 1905. The following year, a ski race took place in Kitzbühel, which - in contrast to the other competitions at the time, which were held as long-distance races - was advertised as a pure downhill race. The winner was the well-known ski instructor Sebastian Monitzer.

At the annual general meeting of the winter sports club in the summer of 1931, the merger with the Kitzbüheler Sport Club and its ski team was decided. The club badge was created by the nationally known painter Alfons Walde (1891-1958). A few months earlier, the first Hahnenkamm races had taken place at the end of March. Since this year, the Kitzbühel Ski Club has been the organizer without interruption. The races were advertised as a combination of downhill and slalom, which was still in its early stages at the time. Members of the Kandahar Ski Club from Mürren, Arlberg, Innsbruck and Kitzbühel took part in the competitions. In doing so, they founded a tradition that continues to this day. The first women's races took place in 1932. Due to the tense political situation during Austrofascism, the races had to be canceled in the following two years.

Karl Koller during his time as an active ski racer. © SN/private

After a break due to the war, the Hahnenkamm races took place again in 1946. Kitzbühel ski legend Karl Koller (1919-2019) emerged as the winner among the men. The long-time head of the “Red Devil” ski school talked about his memories of the races back then in an interview in 2016. He competed in downhill and slalom on the same ski, which he proudly presented in his private museum in the garden of his house. “There was still no marked out runway and no barriers. Everyone had to see how they could find the quickest route to the valley,” said Koller.

Anneliese Schuh-Proxauf (1922-2020), who, like Koller, was active in sports until old age, won the women's event.

The last women's races on the Streif took place in 1961. The winner was the recently deceased Traudl Hecher, who had won an Olympic medal the year before in Squaw Valley as the youngest athlete to date. This and many other stories from more than 90 years of the history of the Hahnenkamm races will be told next weekend. Many winners from past years come to Kitzbühel for this occasion.

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Hahnenkamm: A myth and its history

Like every year, it is a special kind of spectacle: At the weekend, the Hahnenkamm races take place in Kitzbühel with two downhill runs on the Streif and a slalom on the Ganslernhang. These are also competitions that are among the most traditional ski races in the world.

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