Bischofshofen

Bischofshofen is a town in the district of St. Johann im Pongau in the Austrian federal state of Salzburg. It is an important place for travel, sitting on the Salzburg-Tyrol Railway line and near the Tauern Autobahn, a big highway that goes across the main chain of the Alps. This makes Bischofshofen a key spot for people moving between different parts of the country. The town has a special sound to its name, pronounced in German as [bɪʃɔfsˈhoːfn̩].

Geography

Bischofshofen is located in the Northern Limestone Alps, in the valley of the Salzach river, about 50 km south of the city of Salzburg. The town is surrounded by beautiful mountain ranges, including the Hochkönig massif to the west, the Berchtesgaden Alps to the west, the Tennen Mountains to the northeast, and the Salzburg Slate Alps to the southeast.

The area includes several smaller villages such as Alpfahrt, Bischofshofen, Buchberg, and Winkl, among others.

History

Long ago, in the time of the Celts, people mined copper and salt in the nearby hills. Later, the Romans came and took over the area. In the 8th century, Bavarian tribes settled here.

Bischofshofen grew as a place for trade and became important in the late 19th century when a railway was built. It became a town in the year 2000.

Education

Bischofshofen has several schools for children to learn. There are elementary schools like VS Markt, VS Neue Heimat, and VS Pöham. For high school, students can attend Hermann-Wielandner-HS or Franz-Moßhammer-HS.

The town also offers professional education options such as the Polytechnische Schule, Privatgymnasium Sankt Rupert, TS Bischofshofen der Salzburger Tourismusschulen, die BAKIP, Bundesbildungsanstalt für Kindergartenpädagogik, and Zweigstelle des Musikum.

Sports

The last event of the famous Four Hills Tournament in ski jumping happens every year at the Paul-Ausserleitner-Schanze in Bischofshofen, usually around January 6th. Bischofshofen also hosted large hill ski jumping events during the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 1999.

Mayor

Hansjörg Obinger has been the mayor of Bischofshofen since April 2014. Before him, Jakob Rohrmoser was the mayor.

Politics

City Council

Since 2014, the people in Bischofshofen have chosen leaders from three groups to help run the town. These groups are called SPÖ with 15 leaders, ÖVP with 8 leaders, and FPÖ with 2 leaders.

Twin towns — sister cities

Bischofshofen has special friends with other towns. It is friends with Unterhaching in Bavaria, Germany, since 1979, and Adeje in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain.

Notable people

Heinz Oberhummer (1941–2015) was a physicist who studied how stars create new elements, a process called nucleosynthesis.

Sport

Hannes Schroll (1909–1985) was an Austrian Alpine ski racer who helped start the Sugar Bowl Ski Resort in Norden, California. Paul Ausserleitner (1925–1952) was known for ski jumping. Lisi Pall, born in 1951, was an alpine skier. Patrick Reiter, born in 1972, competed in judo.