Alpine tradition in Garmisch-Partenkirchen

OK WM 2011 am 18.12.2007 - 11:26 Uhr

Within the history of skiing in Germany Garmisch-Partenkirchen has an important rank.
Could well be that people in the Harz, in Thuringia or the Black Forest started off earlier to use skis in the 19th century as the inhabitants of the Alps. Still the habitants of Garmisch and of Partenkirchen, each group on its side, started quickly to leave their irredeemable traces in the international history of ski.

Milestones of Ski history are linked with the region and without the longtime internal rivalries being almost cherished over decades; the assets would be even more glamorous.

Two clubs among the founding members of the DSV
As soon as 1900 skiing was part and parcel of the winter snow activities in the “Werdenfelser Land”. In the beginning more so supported by sportsmen from Munich where the first ski club was founded in 1890 and the first ski tour in the “Werdenfelser Land” to the Krottenkopf was started in winter 1895.
The locals very quickly realized the possibilities and the high potential of skiing and soon put on their own emphasis. Latest after 1904 winter festivals over a period of several days were organized and the special trains of the “Bayrischen Staatsbahn“ operated on a regular basis in winter. No wonder that amongst the eleven founding members of the German Ski Association on November 4th 1905 one can find the “Wintersportverein Garmisch” and the
“Rodel- und Skiclub Partenkirchen”. If only they would have gone along with each other!
At the end of 1905 both got excluded of the DSV again because of their ongoing tiring quarrels. The wording spoke considerately of “lack of satisfying organization”.

Many supporters of Zdarsky in Werdenfels
But skiing was already established, and most interestingly the “Werdenfelser Land” was an important center of the supporters of Mathias Zdarsky before World War I. He was one of the main pioneers of alpine skiing in Central Europe, in fact he is deemed to be the inventor of the slalom. Thousands of pupils followed his ski schooling in the region of Garmisch-Partenkirchen where he taught his alpine “Lilienfelder Skilauftechnik”.

Great wealth of experience
Particularly after the First World War the region Garmisch–Partenkirchen grew quickly to be a preferred venue of national and international major ski events. Due to the great wealth of experience of the organizers and hosts on site, the organization became more and more perfect from highlight to highlight and this was definitively an excellent recommendation for the assignment of the World Ski Championship 2011 to Garmisch-Partenkirchen.

The Winter Games 1936 a highlight in sports
Just a reminder of some of the historical steps: It all started out 1922 with the ”Deutsche Winterkampfspiele”, a major international winter sport event, almost forgotten today, but at the time often referred to as the first Olympic Winter games. The 1936 Olympic Winter Games were probably the height. Unforgotten are the Alpine gold medal winners Christl Cranz and Franz Pfnür, their win made them to idols. More major events felt victim to the Second World War. The 1940 Olympic Winter games were almost taking place here and the 1942 World Ski Championships, at the time all the Nordic and Alpine disciplines were still combined, were entirely planed when they were cancelled at short notice.

Host of many major events
The turmoil of the Second World War made Garmisch-Partenkirchen step back shortly as host of major ski events but the role of Garmisch-Partenkirchen as an important part of the popular “Vierschanzentournee” never declined and needs to be mentioned.
This event will be more than just in focus this winter when the new and extremely modern ski jump will be inaugurated. In addition, the history full of tradition of the event will come to our memory again.
Relatively unknown is the fact that Garmisch-Partenkirchen was host of the first Biathlon World Championships in Germany in 1966, never to forget that 1954 Garmisch-Partenkirchen became organizer of the legendary Arlberg-Kandahar-Race for the first time, with the German Mirl Buchner as winner. The first male winner of this famous race was the longtime president of the DSV and Honorary President of today Fritz Wagnerberger in Mürren 1961.