Despite its relatively small population, Austria has produced many great athletes in several sports including skiing, Formula One, mountaineering and tennis. Below is a list of Austrian athletes, organized by sport.
Fencing
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- Albert Bogen (Albert Bógathy) (1882–1961), saber fencer, Olympic silver
- Siegfried "Fritz" Flesch (1872–1939), sabre fencer, Olympic bronze
- Dr. Otto Herschmann (1877–1942), saber fencer, Olympic silver; 100-m freestyle in swimming, Olympic silver
- Ellen Preis (1912–2007), foil fencer, 3-time world champion (1947, 1949, and 1950), Olympic champion, 17-time Austrian champion
Formula One
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Austria has produced two Formula One champions, Jochen Rindt and Niki Lauda. The following is a list of drivers.
- Gerhard Berger (1959–)
- Harald Ertl (1948–1982), Died in 1982 due to an aircraft accident
- Patrick Friesacher (1980–), Drove for Minardi in 2005, scoring three points in the infamous 2005 United States Grand Prix
- Christian Klien (1983–), Drove for Red Bull Racing and HRT in F1.
- Niki Lauda (1949–2019), three time Formula one world champion
- Roland Ratzenberger (1960–1994), died in 1994 due to race related accident
- Jochen Rindt (1942–1970), Formula one world champion, died in 1970 due to race related accident
- Karl Wendlinger (1968–), currently driving in the FIA GT Championship
- Alexander Wurz (1974–), currently driving for Honda (as a test driver)
Football
editThe Bundesliga is Austria's professional football league. Among its better-known clubs are Red Bull Salzburg, Rapid Wien and Sturm Graz. Below is a list of football players from Austria.
- David Alaba (1992–) – player
- Marko Arnautović (1989–) – player
- Stefan Bliem (1983–) – goalkeeper
- Otto Fischer (1901–1941), footballer and coach
- Toni Fritsch (1945–2005), former Austrian football player and former placekicker for several National Football League teams (American football)
- Andreas Herzog (1968–)
- Josef Hickersberger (1948–), football player and coach
- Veli Kavlak (1988–) – player
- Hans Krankl (1953–), footballer and coach
- Božo Kovačević (1979–)
- Yasin Pehlivan (1989–) – player
- Emanuel Pogatetz (1983–)
- Toni Polster (1964–)
- Herbert Prohaska (1955–)
- Helmut Riegler (1976–)
- Harald Ruckendorfer (1982–)
- Paul Scharner (1980–) – player
- Max Scheuer, footballer; national team
- Heinrich Schönfeld (born 1900), football player
- Matthias Sindelar (1903–1939), nicknamed "the Mozart of football", Voted the greatest Austrian football player of all time.
Hockey
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Below is a partial list of hockey people from Austria.
- Christoph Brandner, NHL hockey player
- André Burakovsky, Austria-born Swedish, left wing (Colorado Avalanche)
- Robert Burakovsky, Sweden, right wing (NHL)
- Reinhard Divis, NHL hockey player
- Hans Dobida, inductee into the IIHF Hall of Fame
- Michael Grabner
- Thomas Vanek, NHL hockey player
- Walter Wasservogel, inductee into the IIHF Hall of Fame
Mountaineering
editOn 5 of the 14 Eight-thousanders, Austrians have made the first ascent, more than any other nation. Below is a partial list of mountaineers from Austria.
- Karl Blodig, first to climb all alpine mountains above 4000m
- Hermann Buhl, first ascent of Nanga Parbat (1953), first ascent of Broad Peak (1957)
- Kurt Diemberger, first ascents of Broad Peak (1957) and Dhaulagiri (1960)
- Peter Habeler, first ascent of Mount Everest without oxygen (together with Reinhold Messner)
- Heinrich Harrer, first ascent of the Carstensz Pyramid
- Fritz Moravec, first ascent of Gasherbrum II together with Josef Larch and Hans Willenpart
- Ludwig Purtscheller, first ascent of Kilimanjaro (1889)
- Marcus Schmuck, first ascent of Broad Peak (1957), initiator and leader of the OEAV Karakoram Expedition
- Herbert Tichy, first ascent of Cho Oyu
- Fritz Wintersteller, first ascent of Broad Peak (1957)
Sailing
edit- Andreas Geritzer, sailor
- Roman Hagara, sailor (Olympic champion 2000 and 2004 with Hans-Peter Steinacher)
- Hans-Peter Steinacher, sailor (Olympic champion 2000 and 2004 with Roman Hagara)
Skating
edit- Fritzi Burger, figure skater, Olympic 2x silver, World Championship 2x silver
- Emese Hunyady, speed skater (Olympic champion 1994)
- Felix Kasper, figure skater, Olympic bronze
Skiing
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Austria has been the birthplace of many great skiers and is 5th in the all-time Winter Olympics medal count. It has won more alpine skiing world cups than any other nation (both individually and nationally). Below is a list of famous skiers from Austria.
- Armin Assinger (1964–)
- Dieter Bartsch (1948–), coach
- Michaela Dorfmeister (1973–), Olympic champion
- Christoph Ebenbichler (1983–)
- Stephan Eberharter (1969–), Olympic champion
- Anna Fenninger (1969–), Olympic champion
- Andreas Goldberger (1972–), ski jumper
- Renate Götschl (1975–)
- Christl Haas (1943–2001)
- Hansi Hinterseer (1954–)
- Marcel Hirscher (1989–)
- Franz Klammer (1953–)
- Hermann Maier (1972–), Olympic champion
- Ulrike Maier, Olympic ski champion (1967–1994)
- Annemarie Moser-Pröll (1953–), Olympic champion
- Patrick Ortlieb (1967–), Olympic champion
- Benjamin Raich (1978–), Olympic champion
- Toni Sailer (1935–2009), Won all three gold medals, earning himself the Triple Crown of Alpine Skiing
- Karl Schnabl (1954–), ski jumper
- Karl Schranz (1938–)
- Thomas Stangassinger (1965–), Olympic champion
- Hubert Strolz (1962–), Olympic champion
- Ernst Vettori (1964–), ski jumper
- Anita Wachter (1967–), Olympic champion
- Felix Gottwald (1976–), Olympic champion
Swimming
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- Margarete "Grete" Adler, Olympic bronze (4x100-meter freestyle relay)
- Hedy Bienenfeld (1907–1976), Austrian-American Olympic swimmer
- Alfred Guth (1908–1996), Austrian-born American water polo player, swimmer, and Olympic modern pentathlete
- Judith Haspel (born "Judith Deutsch"), held every Austrian women's middle and long distance freestyle record in 1935[1]
- Otto Herschmann, Olympic silver (100-m freestyle)
- Mirna Jukić, swimmer
- Ruth Langer (1921–1999), Austrian swimmer
- Fritzi Löwy (1910–1994), Olympic swimmer
- Klara Milch, Olympic bronze (4x100-m freestyle relay)
- Paul Neumann, Olympic champion (500-m freestyle)
- Maxim Podoprigora, Olympic swimmer
- Shoshana Ribner, Israeli Olympic swimmer
- Markus Rogan, swimmer
- Otto Scheff (born "Otto Sochaczewsky"), Olympic champion (400-m freestyle) and 2x bronze (400-m freestyle, 1,500-m freestyle)
- Josephine Sticker, Olympic bronze (4x100-m freestyle relay)
- Otto Wahle, 2x Olympic silver (1,000-m freestyle, 200-m obstacle race) and bronze (400-m freestyle); International Swimming Hall of Fame
Table tennis
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- Richard Bergmann, table tennis, 7-time world champion, Hall of Fame
- Erwin Kohn, table tennis world champion
- Alfred Liebster, table tennis player
- Werner Schlager, table tennis player (world champion 2003)
Tennis
editIn recent years Austria's presence on the international tennis scene has grown significantly. The national teams on the Davis and Federation cups have achieved improved rankings. Austria has also produced a former world number one and French Open champion in Thomas Muster. Below is a list of prominent Austrian tennis players.
- Eva Duldig (born 1938), Austrian-born Australian and Dutch tennis player, author
- Werner Eschauer
- Nikola Hofmanova
- Melanie Klaffner
- Julian Knowle
- Daniel Köllerer
- Stefan Koubek
- Oliver Marach
- Patricia Mayr
- Jürgen Melzer
- Yvonne Meusburger
- Uberto De Morpurgo (1896–1961), Austrian-born Italian tennis player, World No. 8
- Thomas Muster, former World No. 1, 1995 French Open Champion
- Tamira Paszek
- Barbara Paulus
- Alexander Peya
- Felix Pipes, Olympic silver (doubles)
- Sylvia Plischke
- Barbara Schett
- Dominic Thiem, 2020 US Open Champion
- Barbara Schwartz
Weightlifting
edit- Robert Fein (1907–1975), Olympic Champion weightlifter
- Hans Haas, weightlifter, Olympic champion (lightweight), silver
- Mickey Hirschl, weightlifting junior champion
Wrestling
edit- Mickey Hirschl, wrestler, 2x Olympic bronze (heavyweight freestyle and Greco-Roman)
- Fred Oberlander, wrestler; world champion (freestyle heavyweight)
Other notables in sport
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- Edin Ibrahimovic, volleyball player
- Kate Allen, triathlete (Olympic champion 2004)
- Toni Fritsch, NFL football player, Super Bowl VI champion
- Stephanie Graf, runner (not related to German tennis player Steffi Graf)
- Alfred Guth (1908–1996), Austrian-born American water polo player, swimmer, and Olympic modern pentathlete
- Walter Hahn, professional wrestler
- Claudia Heill, judoka
- Mickey Hirschl, wrestler, 2x Olympic bronze (heavyweight freestyle and Greco-Roman), shot put and discus junior champion, weightlifting junior champion, and pentathlon champion
- Alfred König (1913–1987), Austrian-Turkish Olympic sprinter
- Sylven Landesberg (born 1990), American-Israeli-Austrian basketball player
- Manfred Magnus (born 1939), motorcycle racer
- Jasmin Ouschan, pool-billiards player
- Rowby-John Rodriguez, darts player
- Nicole Trimmel, kickboxer
- Arnold Schwarzenegger, body builder
- Peter Seisenbacher, judoka (Olympic champion 1984 and 1988)
- Christoph Sieber, surfer (Olympic champion 2000)
- Mensur Suljović, darts player
- Elisabeth Theurer, horse rider
- Georg Totschnig, cyclist
- Christine Wolf, golfer
- Stefan Kraft, ski jumper (world record holder)
- Gregor Schlierenzauer, ski jumper
References
edit- ^ "Diving into troubled waters", Paul Kalina, The Age, November 24, 2005, Retrieved January 1, 2011