Sport Austria Finals: Final touches and Olympic spirit before the opening

Graz beautifully sporty! From June 2nd to 6th, the Sport Austria Finals powered by Intersport & Holding Graz will turn the Styrian Mur metropolis into Austria's sports capital! More than 3.000 athletes, 24 sports associations, 250 competitions, 16 sports venues, 4 days of competition - this is how the sports comeback, cast in figures, reads at the premiere of the multisport event with Olympic spirit.

In the background the “Thunderdome” was screwed and hammered, while upstairs in the VIP Club, 30 hours before the opening ceremony (Wednesday from 18.30 p.m. - in the LIVE stream www.sportpassaustria.at) of the Sport Austria Finals, the current information was shared at a media event.

"The Sport Austria Finals offer sport exactly the stage it deserves," said Sport Austria President Hans Niessl. “Above all, it will be a sports festival for those associations that are otherwise less of a media focus. At the moment, the finals are also an important stimulus from the crisis. For sport it is now: come back stronger! This applies to Graz and Styria and to all 15.000 sports clubs in Austria. The top sport that we are allowed to experience here also brings a comeback of emotions and that means motivation for young and old to actively do sport again. "

"Lighthouse project" in the sporting year 2021

The Graz City Councilor for Sports Kurt Hohensinner emphasizes: “Thanks to Sport Austria for the trust that we can hold this event for two years. We want to go from the sports city to the sportiest city. Together with the state, 130 million euros are being invested in expanding the sports infrastructure. As a city, we are proud to be the first venue of this format to give the championships a new status and, especially after the restrictions of recent months, to send an important impulse to the entire Austrian sports landscape.

The finals are a “lighthouse project” for Hohensinner: “Our sporting year 2021 has been running in Graz since March under the title, Let's go! Graz '. We want to move people and inspire them for sport and exercise. "

This has happened since the start in March with countless low-threshold offers. From the Schloßberg Challenge to collecting steps with an app to participatory offers in public spaces. “In order to appeal to as many people as possible, we also need the large lighthouse projects that have a radiant power and where top-class sport is widespread. That is why the Sport Austria Finals are a special highlight this sporting year, ”said Hohensinner.

"Sports festival of superlatives"

What the Styrian Sports Councilor Christoph Drexler emphasizes: “With the finals we managed to put together a superlative sports festival - despite the great challenges posed by the pandemic. Of course, we also hope that even more associations will be able to participate in 2022. None of this would have been possible without the broad breadth and deep roots of Styrian sport. My thanks therefore go to the three umbrella organizations and the professional associations with their countless volunteer functionaries for their great commitment. They are the basis of domestic sport. "

Free travel for all accredited thanks to Holding Graz

As the official title sponsor of the major sporting event, Holding Graz literally gets the Sport Austria Finals in motion.

Wolfgang Malik, CEO Holding Graz: “We are very proud that we can be a premium partner at the Sport Austria Finals and support them in matters of sports facilities. In addition, we bring the more than 6.000 accredited people from A to B. the population of Graz and all guests of the city. "

Holding Graz's Graz Linien bring passengers safely, comfortably and sustainably to their destination with 85 trams and more than 170 buses.

RecycleMich initiative starts field test in Graz

More than 100.000 bottles and cans have been recorded with the RecycleMich app in Vienna since the beginning of March, and at the Sport Austria Finals in Graz the next step in innovation to increase the collection and recycling rates for PET bottles and cans in Austria will follow.

The RecycleMich initiative launched by Coca-Cola Austria and the Reclay Group is testing advanced technologies in the sports capital. All beverage packaging given out to athletes in Graz has a serial number and can thus be tracked using the RecycleMich app.

“The app solution is a first step towards increasing the return rate for beverage packaging, which is continuously being developed. With this field test, we want to collect valuable knowledge for the further development of the app also in the direction of reimbursed returns, ”explains Philipp Bodzenta, company spokesman for Coca-Cola Austria.

“The RecycleMich app rewards consumers for correct and environmentally conscious recycling: every bottle counts and is a ticket for the competition. The more that is recycled, the higher the chance of attractive prices. By customizing the labels, we can also ensure that all disposable packaging is returned. In this way, they can be sustainably recycled and reprocessed into valuable raw material. They get back into the product cycle in the sense of a modern circular economy ”, emphasizes Stefan Siegl, RecycleMich project manager at the environmental service provider Reclay Group.

Cheerleading tickets sold out in 5 minutes

Julia Mikosch from the cheerleading project Spielberg Graz Giants is looking forward to the big appearance in front of an audience in the “Thunderdome”, which is sold out within 5 minutes, from Saturday: “We haven't had any competitions for a year, so we're very happy and excited that it's about to happen starts with such a bang. As a hometown club, we are very proud to be able to host the championships here. The fans here can look forward to the concentrated energy of our sport, the spark will jump! "

All information about the Sport Austria Finals powered by Intersport & Holding Graz is available at www.sportaustriafinals.at