Over 100 experts (managing directors and board members of companies active in sport) nominated their personal favorites in six categories. In each category, five nominees were prepared for further voting by the editorial team of Sport Business Magazine. The result was made up of online voting (50 percent) and the jury's decision (50 percent). More than 10,000 people took part in the online voting. On November 26, 2019, all nominees were invited to the award ceremony at the Haus des Sports in Vienna. In the category “Sport Tourism Region of the Year”, the destination Saalfelden Leogang was able to secure second place. First place went to Schladming-Dachstein and third place to Kitzbühel.
Marco Pointner, Managing Director of Saalfelden Leogang Touristik, is delighted: “We are extremely pleased with the top result. Second place is a special award. This result is only possible because the various service partners in the region pull together and continue to improve the quality and innovation of the leading tourism products.”
The Saalfelden Leogang vacation region inspires 365 days a year with top-class sporting experiences and top events. Whether biking, hiking, skiing or Nordic sports - the region offers high-quality infrastructure and activities. In the colder months, you can choose between skiing in the Skicircus Saalbach Hinterglemm Leogang Fieberbrunn and the concentrated Nordic expertise that makes the region the Nordic center of Salzburgerland. The Nordic Park at Ritzensee is the heart of the Nordic offerings: kilometers of cross-country ski trails with floodlights, a natural ice rink, easy winter hiking trails and the Fun & Snow Park for your first attempts at cross-country skiing. In addition to the leisure activities, there are also a variety of events: the Saalfelden Ski Marathon, the Nordic Park Experience with the Kids Winter Games, the Nostalgia Ski World Championships and much more.
In summer, the region is a true hiking paradise. “Simply hiking” is the motto here, an invitation to devote yourself entirely to nature and exercise, without distraction, without stress. In order to enjoy these simple moments of walking even more and to change perspective from time to time, special benches and forest swings have been set up along many of the trails. The “stick-sharing” concept has also been developed: simply pick up sticks at the relevant stations when you set off and return them to the starting point after the hike. Saalfelden Leogang has also made a name for itself when it comes to biking. The Bikepark Leogang, international bike events, countless trails & lines for rookies and pros, specialized bike accommodations, stores and schools make the bike day an all-round experience. The Epic Bikepark is so comprehensive and good that it will even host the UCI Mountain Bike Downhill World Championships for the second time from 4-6 September 2020.
The Saalfelden Leogang region has been able to call itself a “Sport Leading Company” since 2016. The certificate, awarded by the Institute for Sports Economics of the Federal Ministry (SPEA), is the seal of quality for Austria's most innovative and future-oriented sports and leisure companies.
