The Arlberg-Kandahar race (often abbreviated A-K or AK ) is an annual alpine skiing event. The first edition of the race was held in 1928 in St. Anton , in the Arlberg district of Austria . The location originally alternated between St. Anton and Mürren , Switzerland . Later, it began to be held in other locations as well, such as Chamonix , France , Sestriere , Italy , and Garmisch-Partenkirchen , Germany .
18-675: The two organizers of the original 1928 race were the Ski Club Arlberg in Austria and the British Kandahar Ski Club , based in Mürren. The latter is named after the British military commander Frederick Roberts, Earl of Kandahar , the major benefactor of the club. (At the first downhill race organized by skiing pioneer Arnold Lunn , held at Crans-Montana in 1911, Roberts donated the trophy,
36-511: Is also just visible. To get to the Schilthorn from the valley floor, a series of cable cars must be taken. The cable cars begin in Stechelberg leaving to Gimmelwald and then onto Mürren. From Mürren another cable car is taken to Birg , which is the final change before the Schilthorn. This cable airway is the longest and was the most technically challenging airway to be built. The other way up
54-649: Is still found in the names of many legendary race courses, such as the "Kandahar Garmisch" in Germany, the "Kandahar" event at Chamonix and the spectacular "Kandahar Banchetta" course in Sestriere that hosted the 1997 FIS World Championships. the 2006 Olympics as well as several World Cup races including the 'Big' Finals in 2004. Kandahar Ski Club The Kandahar Ski Club was founded by Arnold Lunn and other British skiers on 30 January 1924 in Mürren , Switzerland . The club
72-423: Is to take the cable car from Lauterbrunnen to Grütschalp and a train to Mürren, from where the cable car must be taken. Between Birg and the summit, the cable car passes over Grauseeli, a small lake. It is also possible to hike to the peak, along the myriad of small, but well-marked paths to the top. The hike to the top takes roughly five hours from Gimmelwald for a fit walker. The panoramic revolving restaurant at
90-566: The Scaramanga Roped Race is organised by the club around New Years Day each year. The International Inferno Race takes place in Mürren at the end of January each year with over 100 club members taking part. The race is now organised by the Skiclub Mürren , attracting more than 1,700 competitors from 25 countries The Kandahar Ski Club organises Junior Race Training to support British ski racing. Training camps take place throughout
108-501: The Alpine events to its programme in 1930 and in 1931 the FIS held their Alpine Championship in Mürren. It was organised by the British. At the end of the 1930s, the objectives of the club had been achieved - downhill and slalom racing were internationally accepted under the rules that they had helped develop. The club had over 600 members. The Kandahar Ski Club has its clubhouse in Mürren, where
126-569: The Roberts of Kandahar Challenge Cup.) Lunn, founder of the Kandahar Ski Club, met Hannes Schneider of the Ski Club Arlberg in 1927. Together they organized the first slalom race in Arlberg, held at St. Anton. The event was successful, so on March 3 and 4 of the following year they held the first Arlberg-Kandahar races. The slalom and downhill events constituted the first alpine combined events in
144-400: The Schilthorn was chosen when the film's producer financed the completion of the famous revolving platform, for the right to use the facility for his next film, the first and only Bond film starring George Lazenby . A number of scenes in the film were photographed by cameraman John Jordan hanging below a speeding helicopter. Jordan had previously lost a foot to a helicopter rotor while filming
162-630: The club had attracted over 200 members, but Alpine skiing still was not recognised by the various National Ski associations, although at university level, international competitions were being held between the Swiss, Germans, Austrians and British. The first Inferno Race took place in January 1928 when 19 members of Kandahar Ski Club climbed the Schilthorn (2,970m) above Mürren to race down the 2,100 metres to Lauterbrunnen, 14 kilometres away. The FIS finally admitted
180-687: The history of alpine racing. 45 racers from Austria , Switzerland , the United Kingdom , and the United States took part. Within two years, the popularity of the event brought a major success: in 1930, the International Ski Federation recognized alpine skiing events in addition to the traditional Nordic disciplines. From 1931 until the Second World War, the races were alternately held at Arlberg and Mürren. In 1948, Chamonix became
198-400: The previous Bond movie You Only Live Twice . Within a year and fitted with a prosthetic limb, Jordan lost his footing and fell 600 metres (2,000 ft) to his death when filming similar aerial imagery used in the film Catch-22 . During the winter, the Schilthorn is the traditional start for the world's longest downhill ski race, the "Inferno," which started 96 years ago in 1928. It is
SECTION 10
#1732852255458216-663: The summit is within the municipality of Lauterbrunnen , although the western slopes are within the municipality of Reichenbach im Kandertal . Both municipalities are in the canton of Bern . The summit has a panoramic view which spans from the Titlis , Jungfrau , Mönch , Eiger , over the Bernese Alps and the Jura mountains up to the Vosges Mountains and the Black Forest . Mont Blanc
234-461: The summit, Piz Gloria , was featured in the 1969 James Bond movie On Her Majesty's Secret Service . A black ski run featured in the film starts at the summit and leads down to the Engetal below Birg. The restaurant revolves a full 360 degrees in 45 minutes, slightly faster than the minute hand of a clock. After considering a number of locations, the stalled construction of the sports bar atop
252-736: The third host, followed by Sestriere in 1951 and Garmisch-Partenkirchen in 1954. Until the introduction of the World Cup in 1967 , the A-K races were the most important alpine ski races besides the Winter Olympics and the World Championships . In the World Cup era, the Arlberg-Kandahar races have continued to be held as part of the World Cup, but their importance has diminished. The word "Kandahar"
270-634: The year. Schilthorn The Schilthorn (2,970 metres (9,744 ft)) is a summit in Europe , in the Bernese Alps of Switzerland . It overlooks the valley of Lauterbrunnen in the Bernese Oberland , and is the highest mountain in the range lying north of the Sefinenfurgge Pass . The Schilthorn lies above the village of Mürren , from where a cable car leads to its summit. Administratively,
288-496: Was Cecil Hopkinson. The first Winter Olympic Games also took place in 1924 as did the foundation of the FIS . There were only Nordic events at these games and the FIS was concerned only with these. The club's aim was to ensure that the Alpine disciplines were included in the future. In the same year the club issued a challenge to the British skiers in Wengen across the valley. The competition
306-667: Was for a slalom and a downhill race, which was won by the Kandahar. The skiers from Wengen went on to form the Downhill Only Ski Club (DHO). Swiss skiers also shared the objectives of the Kandahar. In Mürren were brothers Walter and Max Amstutz, both of whom were keen downhill skiers and were friends with the British. Walter Amstutz founded the Schweizerischen Akademischen Skiklub in November 1924. By 1927
324-608: Was founded as a ski racing club and with the purpose of promoting downhill and slalom racing at a time when Alpine skiing competitions were not recognised internationally. The Kandahar Ski Club takes its name from the Roberts of Kandahar Challenge Cup ; the first ski race held was in 1911 over the Plaine Morte Glacier in Crans-Montana , Switzerland for a trophy donated by Field Marshal Earl Roberts of Kandahar . The winner
#457542