Austrian Post AG is launching a new employment model for domestic winter sports talents: Seven athletes from the Austrian Ski Federation will work up to 20 hours per week in post offices, combining professional experience with their sporting careers; more are expected to follow.
Combining Career and Elite Sport
Employment with the Austrian Post offers a predictable income and stable working conditions – crucial factors for many athletes during a decisive phase of their careers. At the same time, the Post offers flexible working hours to best accommodate training and competition schedules. For the Post, the compatibility of career and elite sport is paramount. In addition to individual support for athletes, the new model also strengthens branch operations through additional support at high-traffic locations.
Testimonials:
Roswitha Stadlober (President of the Austrian Ski Federation): “This cooperation with the Austrian Post represents a significant step in the sustainable support of our athletes. The combination of financial and social security, along with the necessary flexibility for training and competition, creates precisely the stability that elite sport at the highest level requires. Especially during the sensitive phase between emerging talent and the world's elite, talented athletes need an environment where education and sport are not at odds, but rather complement each other.”
Peter Umundum (Deputy Director General, Board Member for Parcel & Logistics, Austrian Post AG): “The cooperation between the Austrian Ski Federation (ÖSV) and Austrian Post is a classic win-win situation: The young athletes receive stability and security so they can fully concentrate on their training. At the same time, we gain new branch employees who can flexibly support our teams. As an enthusiastic athlete myself, I know how crucial the right support behind the scenes is. I am therefore all the more pleased that we at Austrian Post can make a concrete contribution.”
Michaela Schmidt (State Secretary for Sport): “Successful elite sport also needs prospects beyond the active career. Austria has created an internationally recognized model for this, from which more than 400 athletes already benefit. The fact that the Austrian Post is now becoming part of this path sends a strong signal for the future of Austrian sport. Thank you very much!”
Young athletes meet the workplace
Currently, seven young Austrian Ski Federation (ÖSV) athletes from the disciplines of alpine skiing and ski jumping are part of the new model and are working in branches in Tyrol, Salzburg, and Upper Austria. Many of them are at the beginning of their international careers and are simultaneously completing intensive training and competition programs. The model allows them to combine athletic development and professional practice in their everyday lives.
Niklas Bachlinger (ÖSV ski jumper): “The Austrian Post gives me the opportunity to optimally combine my career and elite sport. The flexible collaboration and social security provide me with the necessary security to continue to fully concentrate on training and competitions.”
To kick things off, Austrian Post is sponsoring the following Austrian Ski Federation (ÖSV) talents:
• Emilia Herzgsell, 20 years old, alpine ski racer from Salzburg
• Felix Endstrasser, 22 years old, alpine ski racer from Tyrol
• Hannah Wiegele, 24 years old, ski jumper from Carinthia
• Johannes Pölz, 20 years old, ski jumper from Vorarlberg
• Meghann Wadsak, 18 years old, ski jumper from Vienna
• Niklas Bachlinger, 24 years old, ski jumper from Vorarlberg
• Pia Hauzenberger, 20 years old, alpine ski racer from Upper Austria