Lobnig duo also honored

Vadlau and Tschofenig are athletes of the year

The election for Carinthia's Sportsperson of the Year is over! At the 60th Night of Sport at the Villach Congress Center, Olympic champion Lara Vadlau and ski jumping ace Daniel Tschofenig were honored. The rowing sisters Magdalena and Katharina Lobnig were honored as Team of the Year.

Lara Vadlau and Daniel Tschofenig are beaming sooo beautifully. No wonder! Both the Olympic sailing champion and our ski jumping high-flyer won a real premiere title - the two were named Carinthia's "Sportsmen and Sportswomen of the Year" for the first time!

Vadlau had already entered the Villach Congress Center - which this time formed the big stage of the 60th "Night of Sport" organized by the Carinthian Sports Press Club - with a really big grin on his face. And then to collect her fifth trophy here: Because the Maria Rain native was already named "Rookie of the Year" in 2010, and has already been voted Team of the Year a whole three times - in 2014, 2015 and 2016 with former sailing partner Jolanta Ogar.

Carinthia's athlete of the year

1. Daniel TSCHOFENIG (ski jumping) 443 points
2. Heiko GIGLER (swimming) 417
3. Marco SCHWARZ (alpine skiing) 408
4. Marco HALLER (cycling) 361
5. Felix OSCHMAUTZ (canoeing) 215
6. Marco KASPER (ice hockey) 213
7. Mario LEITNER (canoeing) 198
8. Paul VERBNJAK (ski mountaineering) 182
9. Fabian OBMANN (snowboarding) 176
10. Luca RAUCHENWALD (water skiing) 127

This time, the first Olympic victory at the Summer Games for our province - which she won in the 470 mixed with Lukas Mähr from Vorarlberg - simply counted for more and Lara received the "Franz" as a trophy! "With so many phenomenal athletes in Carinthia, the individual title means a lot to me," said the 30-year-old jubilantly.

Lara Vadlau (left) sailed to Olympic gold with Lukas Mähr.

(Bild: GEPA/GEPA pictures)

Surprisingly, despite her magnificent triumph in Marseille, it was not a clear-cut affair. The gap to second-placed Anna Gasser was "only" 56 points. For comparison: last year, the snowboard queen triumphed with a lead of 115 points. .

Carinthia's sportswomen of the year

1. Lara VADLAU (sailing) 509
2. Anna GASSER (snowboarding) 453
3. Magdalena LOBNIG (rowing) 418
4. Vanessa HERZOG (speed skating) 339
5. Sabine PAYER (snowboarding) 292
6. Lisa PERTERER (triathlon) 236
7. Jasmin OUSCHAN (billiards) 153
8. Daniela ULBING (snowboard) 150
9. Katharina TRUPPE (alpine skiing) 141
10. Kathi NASCHENWENG (soccer) 126

Vadlau is currently completing her basic year as a doctor at Villach Hospital - what does the future hold for her in terms of sport? "I've realized that normal work isn't for me yet - so I'm going to keep sailing. Definitely until the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, but I don't know yet whether I'll be sailing with my partner Mähr. We'll get together in 2025 to discuss everything."

Men's winner Daniel Tschofenig is currently at the World Cup in Engelberg, where the Hohenthurner was XXXXXXXXXXXXXX. He sent his greetings via live video from Switzerland and was really happy: "I didn't expect this!" Especially because he is the first ski jumper to be honored since Thomas Morgenstern won his sixth victory in 2013: "Morgi has always been my great role model - especially because of his jumping style." In 2022, he was already honored once at the Carinthian Sports Gala - as Rookie of the Year.

Daniel Tschofenig cheered in the men's competition.

(Bild: APA/Geir Olsen/NTB)

Last season was tough for Tschofenig at times - after a mixed Four Hills Tournament, he even had to skip a few World Cups and train, but he grew from it: "It helped me a lot for the rest of my career." In the previous season, he finished second and third on the podium twice - before becoming one of the world's top athletes in November and celebrating his first World Cup victory in Wisla (Poland) at the beginning of December: "It's been a steady upward trend!"

However, it was a heart-stopping final in the voting: Tschofenig, second-placed Heiko Gigler and third-placed Marco Schwarz were separated by just 35 points!

Heiko Gigler was narrowly beaten.

(Bild: GEPA/GEPA pictures)

Eight Olympic champions
Lots of sports celebrities turned up - a total of eight Olympic champions were present, including Vadlau, Gasser, Karl Schnabl, Franz Klammer, Fritz Strobl, "Mothl" Mayer, Thomas Morgenstern and Markus Salcher (Paralympics).

Nach WM-Gold

Lobnig-Schwester erstmals Team des Jahres

They also applauded the team of the year: Magdalena and Katharina Lobnig! Rowing ace Magdalena has already been Carinthia's Sportswoman of the Year twice: in 2016 when she won European Championship gold and came sixth at the Olympics in Rio, and in 2021 after her Olympic bronze medal in Tokyo. This year, for the first time, the 34-year-old is not alone on the sporting throne! 

The Lobnig sisters were named Team of the Year.

(Bild: APA/WORLD ROWING)

On Thursday, she had her eyes lasered in Vienna - only at the last moment did she decide to come to the gala despite the after-effects of the operation. "It's so unusual to see so well again," laughs Magdalena, who had 3.5 dioptres in her right eye - and had always sat in a rowing boat without glasses or lenses. "After switching to coastal rowing, that was a bigger problem - you have to see the buoys in the distance. That's easier now."

Rain of gold at the World and European Championships
After missing out on qualifying for the Olympic Games in Paris in the double sculls (Magdalena came tenth in the single sculls in Paris!), the sisters switched from flat water to coastal rowing. In Genoa, they won World Championship gold as a duo in confident style, Magdalena added the gold in the single scull. Sister Kathi had previously won the title at the European Championships in Gdansk (Poland) in the mixed two with Charles Cousins (GB).

This is Kathi's first ever top placing in an athletes' poll. She will also accompany Magdalena on her way to the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. The coastal rowing sprint will be an Olympic event for the first time - a big goal for Magdalena!

Sportler mit Behinderung

Köck drohte das Ende – Grochar löste Salcher ab

What a year it was for para-skiing ace Melissa Köck! The 27-year-old won five gold medals at the Deaflympics - the Olympic Games for the deaf - in Erzurum (Turkey). "My highlight so far," beams Melissa. Even though she has been struggling with knee problems for four years. In 2024, Köck had to go under the knife twice in three and a half months due to second-degree cartilage damage and had to have regular anaesthetic injections in her knees for a while - her career was on the brink of ending. "I was already seriously thinking about it," says Köck. Yesterday, she secured the title of "Sportswoman of the Year with a Disability" for the fifth time - after 2010, 2015, 2017 and 2020. In January, it's off to the Deaf World Championships in Jasna (Svk).

Thomas Grochar won for the first time.

(Bild: GEPA/GEPA pictures)

In the men's event, however, an era came to an end! After eight (!) years, Thomas Grochar takes over from Markus Salcher (who won the title a total of eleven times) and was named "Sportsman of the Year with a Disability" for the first time. Because he came third in the World Cup slalom in Wildschönau (T). "It was a good year," grins Grochar. This year's start to the season also went perfectly. In December, he celebrated his first victory in a speed race at the Super-G in Steinach (T). He is clearly also a medal candidate at the World Championships in Maribor in February.

Aufsteiger des Jahres

Heimo ist in der U19 der Beste der Welt

Carinthia's rising star of the year, Heimo Fugger, was conspicuous by his absence. And for good reason: the 17-year-old finished eleventh in the elimination race at the track cycling competition in Novo Mesto (Slo) on Friday, sensationally taking first place in the U19 junior world rankings. "That's really cool," grins Heimo, who this year became the first Carinthian to win the U17 European Championship title on the track in the points race. He also took silver in the elimination event. He also celebrated second place in the scratch event at his World Championship debut in China. "That was surprising. It went really well in the highlights," says Fugger.

Heimo Fugger is the rising star of the year.

(Bild: zVg)

Among the girls, water skiing talent Katharina Hafner was celebrated as "Rookie". The 17-year-old from Pörtschach jumped to bronze at the U17 European Championships and is second in her category in Europe's combined rankings. "I'm really happy with my performance," says Hafner, who suffered a bulging disc at the end of September and is now starting strength training again after a long break. In 2025, she is aiming for a top place at the U21 European Championships in Vienna in August.