A question of money

The Styrian government wants more school ski courses

In alpine regions, children usually still learn to ski as a matter of course, but the situation is very different in the cities.(Bild: Hutter Melanie)

Skiing as a popular sport? The state government wants to send more Styrian children on winter sports weeks in future. However, the tight budget situation makes it difficult to provide high levels of funding.

The discussion flares up again and again: Is skiing still a popular sport in Austria? Around a third of the population regularly hit the slopes, and many boys and girls in cities in particular never learn the sport.

"Skiing creates an identity for Styria," says Education Councillor Stefan Hermann (FPÖ). The aims of the blue-black government program are to expand the range of ski courses on offer and make participation affordable. Organizational hurdles are also to be removed.

Our aim is to get more children back on school ski courses. There are currently financial and organizational hurdles.

Landesrat Stefan Hermann

Bild: Christian Jauschowetz

Funding amount increased to 400,000 euros
A first step would be to make ski courses compulsory again in the curriculum - but that is a matter for the federal government. Styria still receives funding and has been receiving financial support for travel for years: 200,000 euros per year were available until 2022, then the pot increased to 300,000 euros. This (provincial election) winter, it is even 400,000 euros - a sum that will probably be difficult to raise in the future given the budget situation.

Only entire ski weeks are currently funded. "We could also imagine funding courses by the day, such as the bus transfers there," says Hermann to "Krone". It is also clear that no child will be forced to learn to ski. You can always opt out. 

Incidentally, there were 154 applications for funding this winter and currently only 30,000 euros (out of 400,000 EUro) are still available.