First Austrian Yukigassen Title Goes To Salzburg School Team After Throwing 3000 Snowballs

The first Austrian Yukigassen Championship at Rossbrand in Filzmoos has been decided. After around 3,000 snowballs were thrown, the first Yukigassen title went to the Salzburg school team from BORG Radstadt. The Schnitzel Slingers team from Vienna took second place, followed by the Resonac team from Upper Austria, the Hervis team and the local heroes from Filzmoos. The BORG Radstadt school selection is now the official Yukigassen national champions and has a starting place at the 2025 Yukigassen European Championships in Finland. For the victory, the team was rewarded with championship medals, a trophy donated by Sports Minister Werner Kogler and non-cash prizes from the championship sponsors.

Head of tourism Peter Donabauer, who became aware of winter sports through a contact in Finland, is pleased about the first Yukigassen Championship being held in Austria with twelve registered teams. "The focus was always on fun, but as the finals got closer, the teams' tactical strategies and maneuvers improved." Donabauer received expertise and support from Finland, where Yukigassen is a very popular team sport. President and Vice President of the Finnish Yukigassen Association Ari Pöyliö and Leo Korhonen ensured that the tournament was carried out according to the internationally prescribed rules.

The team sport Yukigassen (Japanese for snow fight) was invented in Hokkaido (Japan) in 1988 and, to put it simply, is a sporting snowball fight with clear rules and structures between two teams. To be successful, there are a number of strategies and tactics that can be used by teams.

In a Yukigassen match, two teams with seven players each face each other. The teams throw snowballs at each other, with each team having 90 snowballs created using a special snowball machine from Japan. On the 10 x 36 meter, snow-covered playing field there are small protective walls behind which you can seek safety from your opponent's snowballs.

Anyone who is hit must leave the field of play. The playing time per set is three minutes. The winner is the team that has the most players on the field at the end of the set and is the first to win two sets. Capturing the enemy flag can also lead to victory. For protection, all participants are equipped with a sports helmet with a full visor.

The date for the 2nd International Austrian Yukigassen Championship has already been set: March 14th to 16th, 2025 in Filzmoos.