Konnekt GmbH, under the leadership of Karl Morgenbesser and Thorsten Schmitz, has won the race for the mountain bike coordination position advertised by the Austrian federal government. This means that the topic is in experienced hands. Morgenbesser is the founder and managing director of Wexl Trails and the associated St. Corona adventure arena. He has succeeded in transforming the former ski resort near Vienna, which is suffering from a lack of snow and ever shorter winters in times of climate change, into one of the best mountain bike destinations in Austria. Schmitz brings with him many years of experience in sports retail and brand development, having managed the fortunes of Intersport Austria for six years. Both are also passionate mountain bikers in their private lives and are only too familiar with the field of tension in which the sport operates in Austria.

The initiative to create a nationwide mountain bike coordination came from the then Sports Minister Werner Kogler (Greens) in 2022. "The call for tenders for the nationwide Austrian mountain bike coordination office is a milestone in the development of an Austria-wide mountain bike strategy. After decades of seemingly irresolvable conflicts of interest, it has been possible to develop and finance a project jointly supported by all ministries involved in the topic and the federal provinces," explained Kogler. The path to the 2024 tender was not an easy one. It took three ministries - sport, agriculture and transport - as well as the State Secretariat for Tourism and the nine federal provinces to get the project on track.

Stakeholder process for strategy development

Now the ball is in Morgenbesser and Schmitz's court, who are to establish their coordination office as a knowledge and information hub as a first step in order to start a comprehensive stakeholder process. The mountain bike strategy for Austria should then be available by the end of 2026 and measures subsequently developed to implement it. Morgenbesser and Schmitz's coordination office will conduct the discussions and negotiations with the various stakeholders. It will be accompanied by a steering group made up of the ministries - now sports, forestry, tourism and mobility - as well as the federal states.

The aim is to create a nationwide offer for mountain bikers by 2033 that is legal and accepted by all stakeholders. This is no easy task in Austria, where an anachronistic forestry law dating back to 1975, long before the sport of mountain biking existed, prohibits cycling in forests. Where there is no powerful lobby such as tourism behind it, it is therefore usually very difficult to create a legal range of routes. The new coordination office is intended to play a mediating role here and help to create the widest possible range of routes so that the legal practice of the sport is possible "regardless of where you live or your wallet", as Secretary of State for Sport Michaela Schmidt (SPÖ) put it.

Complicated starting position

The tension between Morgenbesser and Schmitz's work here is shown by the statement from Agriculture Minister Norbert Totschnig (ÖVP) on the expectations of the coordination office: "I see the mountain bike strategy as a great opportunity to create an attractive offer for sport and recreation, to take into account the wildlife and forest ecology aspects and at the same time to strengthen the regions. The top priority here is to take into account the interests of all stakeholders. Forest managers, who do valuable work in adapting forests to climate change, among other things, must be fully involved. This is the only way to ensure the sustainable use of the natural and cultural landscape. There must be clear regulations and contracts to protect our forests." State Secretary for Tourism Elisabeth Zehetner (ÖVP) in turn emphasized the economic importance of cycling for Austria as a vacation destination. Around a third of all summer visitors now come to cycle, making biking the number two summer sport after hiking. And 80 percent of these cycling tourists are regular guests, which is why a comprehensive offer is of great importance to them.

Whether the time until 2033 and, above all, the budget of 2.8 million euros will be sufficient for this remains to be seen. In any case, Morgenbesser and Schmitz have a big challenge ahead of them. "For me, mountain biking is much more than a sport - it's a movement that connects society, regions and nature. With the national strategy, we want to harness this power for Austria - in a way that promotes health, is environmentally conscious and economically viable," says Morgenbesser, outlining his plans. Schmitz sees his task in a similar way: "Our aim is to think of mountain biking as an issue for society as a whole. Austria has the opportunity to become a pioneer in Europe - if we succeed in combining sport, nature, property, mobility, business and tourism in a shared vision."