Cooking for our aces

The cheat sheet for the Olympics is always at the ready

The team with director Herbert Panholzer (left), cookery teacher Erwin Schiffbänker (2nd from left) and the pupils from Bad Leonfelden.

(Bild: Wenzel Markus/Markus Wenzel)

On July 23, six tourism students from Bad Leonfelden will board the plane to Paris. We can already reveal what they have in store for our Olympians and where they can get some extra help. And that cheating is also allowed, but not with the ingredients.

The last glasses have been washed, the hotplates scrubbed and the Paris 2024 adventure can begin! We're not talking about the 18 Upper Austrian athletes who have qualified for the Olympic Games, but about the six young ladies and gentlemen from the Bad Leonfelden tourism school who will be cooking up a storm in the Austria House and looking after the well-being of the red-white-red athletes.

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"From Wiener Schnitzel and Kaiserschmarrn to the Brettljause, there's only local food," says Erwin Schiffbänker, giving his students some final instructions. "You should know the names of our athletes. I watch it with them every day. Knowing all 80 athletes from all over Austria is unlikely, but I want them to be friendly and helpful and have the right demeanor," says the cooking instructor, setting a professional agenda.

Resilience is put to the test every day
They work ten to twelve hours a day. At the Winter Games in Pyeongchang, there was no day off in the three weeks. Their resilience is also put to the test. But the sextet agrees that it's worth it. "I've been behind the bar since I was a kid and helped serve drinks. You have lots of opportunities, it's a cool job and a great chance to get to know the athletes. I play soccer myself and go dancing. I follow the team on social media and assume that I'm up to speed. I'm a fan of Lukas Weißhaidinger - maybe I'll get the chance to watch the shot put," says Serina Naji, who is looking forward to the trip to the city of love.

We have 500 pupils in two types of school. We are very proud that they can show what they have learned here in Paris.

Herbert Panholzer, Direktor Tourismusschule Bad Leonfelden.

Bild: Wenzel Markus/Markus Wenzel

Who is who?
Meanwhile, one of her classmates is still mixing a cocktail and knows every single ingredient by heart. "I passed my final exam with a very good grade, so all the recipes are firmly anchored in my head," smiles Kerstin Seyr, who can make alcohol-free cocktails as well as special drinks. "Of course, for the athletes who come to the Austria House before their competition and just want to enjoy the atmosphere."

Felix Hayder and Lena Klein serve them local food there. The two know how to prepare it like the back of their hands. Only the names of the athletes are still a bit of a problem. "I still need a cheat sheet for some of them, but I know Weißhaidinger," grins Hayder. Then nothing can really go wrong.