St Anton bright spots outweigh drawbacks as ski party ends

On the positive side of the ledger: 13 days of worldwide winter sport exposure for the Tyrolian village, not exactly unknown before the start but now with a higher tourism profile than ever after the bi-annual race extravaganza. The town's top tourism official gushed joyously as the ski racing circus packed its tents to make room for welcome guests of another ilk - free-spending regular tourists - not as fast on skis, but quicker to open their wallets.

"We are very happy about this world event of skiing," said Heinrich Wagner, the resort's director of tourism. "It was an international festival of joy and happiness." Many local merchants might see things in a more venal vein. Losses of revenue due to blocked-off pistes, free sponsor hospitality, reduced-price train service and a ban on cars might hit two million dollars.

Many merchants admitted: while the Championships were great for business, there's nothing like a normal ski week when everyone must spend, spend, spend for every good and service. The arrival of a respectable quarter-of-a-million spectators over the fortnight - that's about half the number which packed into Melbourne Park for last month's Australian Open Grand Slam tennis - didn't hurt skiiing's image.

But a row between Austrian orgnisers and the Swiss-based International Ski Federation will have further repercussions. Last weekend's snowstorm which forced postponement until mid-week of the highlight men's and women's downhills was the cause of the problem. The massive snow clearing effort which involved nearly 1,000 workers and tonnes of machinery managed to get the races off. But course preparation on the women's slalom course left much to be desired.

With around half of the starters failing to finish due to ruts and soft spots, blame was flying. The FIS boss Gianfranco Kasper called the piste preparation an abomination. The Austrians responded that it was the federation who dictated terms - including a ban on chemicals which would have hardened the course surface.

The slanging match continued to it's logical conclusion - the Austrians handed back a set of brand-new World Cup team races set for Saalbach in March, leaving the FIS to try and find a home for the event on short notice. But hard feeling aside, local alpine officials are looking forward to a knock-on affect for visitors due in over the remaining three months of the ski season.

"People like to ski where they have seen their idols succeed," said tourism boss Wagner. "A strong late season would make me very happy for all of those enterprises like hotels and pensions, restaurants, shops lifts and ski schools who have had to bear losses during the Championships."

Beside the recognition, St Anton also gained some tangibles - like a train-free central village. Funding for a pre-championships infastructure project allowed shifting of the main-line railroad tracks from the centre to a few hundred meters sideways across a state road, creating a much more pleasant ambience in town.

A cable car system was also upgraded and the village will benefit from a congress centre which includes indoor and outdoor swimming pools and fitness zone. "None of this would have been possible without the Championships," said Wagner.

(la/dpa)