Book presentation - Winter Olympics in Innsbruck

The 1964 and 1976 Olympic Games in Innsbruck: diverse reflections on the historic Winter Games, accompanied by numerous photographs.
February 2026 marks the 50th anniversary of the XII Olympic Winter Games in Innsbruck. Twelve years after 1964, the Tyrolean capital once again hosted this global winter sports event. With this second hosting, Innsbruck cemented its reputation as a "sports city" and became the unofficial "capital of winter sports." The contributions in this volume focus less on the sporting events themselves and more on the organizational, structural, and social conditions surrounding the Games and their aftermath.
The authors address various facets of the development of sports history: from major international events as precursors to the Winter Olympics to the FIS competitions of the 1930s in Innsbruck to a comparison of the 1964 and 1976 Games. Other contributions examine the Games in the context of the Cold War, Austrian nation building, and their international perception. The later, failed efforts to reapply are also discussed.
Questions of ecological sustainability and environmental impact are also in focus, as are urban changes in the wake of the Games and cultural reflections: the portrayal of the Winter Games in literature and music, the role of volunteers, and their memories. The visual and media staging of the Games, their image production, and reception are also examined. Last but not least, one contribution addresses the issue of doping in Olympic winter sports.
Finally, the question of how the Games are remembered today – whether in collective memory or in the handling of memorabilia – is explored.