Gröden-Val Gardena
Encyclopedia
Dolomites
The Dolomites are a mountain range located in north-eastern Italy. It is a part of Southern Limestone Alps and extends from the River Adige in the west to the Piave Valley in the east. The northern and southern borders are defined by the Puster Valley and the Sugana Valley...
of northern Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. It is best known as a skiing
Skiing
Skiing is a recreational activity using skis as equipment for traveling over snow. Skis are used in conjunction with boots that connect to the ski with use of a binding....
, rock climbing
Rock climbing
Rock climbing also lightly called 'The Gravity Game', is a sport in which participants climb up, down or across natural rock formations or artificial rock walls. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a pre-defined route without falling...
, and woodcarving area.
Geography
The valley's main river is the Derjon. The three municipalities in the Val Gardena are UrtijëiUrtijëi
Urtijëi is a town of 4,637 inhabitants in South Tyrol, in the Italian region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. It occupies the Val Gardena within the Dolomites, a mountain chain that is part of the Alps...
, Sëlva
Sëlva
Sëlva is a comune in the Val Gardena in South Tyrol, northern Italy, located about 70 km northeast of the city of Trento and about 30 km east of the city of Bolzano.-Geography:...
and Santa Cristina which were served by the Val Gardena Railway
Val Gardena Railway
The Val Gardena Railway or Klausen-Plan was a narrow gauge railway operating in the Val Gardena in the Dolomites of northern Italy. The railway was constructed in 1915 when the region was part of the Austrian Empire. It was 32.5km long, and operated 0-8-0T steam locomotives constructed by Krauss....
from 1916 until 1960.
Culture
Gherdëina is one of five valleys with a majority of LadinLadin
Ladin is a language consisting of a group of dialects spoken in the Dolomite Mountains in Northern Italy in the border regions of the provinces Trentino, South Tyrol and Belluno...
speakers (two of these valleys are in South Tyrol
South Tyrol
South Tyrol , also known by its Italian name Alto Adige, is an autonomous province in northern Italy. It is one of the two autonomous provinces that make up the autonomous region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. The province has an area of and a total population of more than 500,000 inhabitants...
). The form of the Ladin language spoken in this valley is called Gardenese in Italian, Grödnerisch in German and Gherdëina in Ladin.
Woodcarving
The woodcarving industry has flourished in Gherdëina since the 17th century. Since the 19th century, statueStatue
A statue is a sculpture in the round representing a person or persons, an animal, an idea or an event, normally full-length, as opposed to a bust, and at least close to life-size, or larger...
s and altar
Altar (Catholicism)
In the liturgy of the Roman Catholic Church, the altar is where the Sacrifice of the Mass is offered. Mass may sometimes be celebrated outside a sacred place, but never without an altar, or at least an altar stone.-Precedent:...
s carved in the area have been shipped to Catholic churches throughout the world. In the 19th and 20th century, carving of wooden toys was such a widespread occupation in all Gardenese families that Amelia Edwards
Amelia Edwards
Amelia Ann Blanford Edwards was an English novelist, journalist, traveller and Egyptologist.Born in London to an Irish mother and a father who had been a British Army officer before becoming a banker, Edwards was educated at home by her mother, showing considerable promise as a writer at a young age...
called Urtijëi
Urtijëi
Urtijëi is a town of 4,637 inhabitants in South Tyrol, in the Italian region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. It occupies the Val Gardena within the Dolomites, a mountain chain that is part of the Alps...
the "capital of Toyland." One of the valley's best-known products is the peg wooden doll
Peg wooden doll
Peg wooden dolls also known as Dutch dolls is a type of wooden doll from Germany and the Netherlands. They originated as simple lathe turned dolls from the Val Gardena in the Alps. These dolls were sold undressed...
which was popular all over Europe and America in the 19th century.
In one of her many trips Margaret Warner Morley
Margaret Warner Morley
Margaret Warner Morley was an American educator, biologist and writer, author of many books on nature and biology for children and novel writer.- Biography :...
went to Europe to the Val Gardena where she was inspired to write the novel Donkey John of the toy valley.
The Parish Church of Urtijëi displays a rich collection of statues carved by local artists in the last two centuries. The Museum Gherdëina
Museum Gherdëina
The Gherdëina Local Heritage Museum was opened in the Cësa di Ladins in Urtijëi in 1960. The building is the seat of the Union di Ladins de Gherdëina a cultural organisation for the keeping of the Ladin language and heritage in Val Gherdëina...
in Urtijëi owns a rich collection of historical wooden toys and woodcarved statues and figurines
Figurines
Figurines is an indie rock band from Denmark, formed in the mid-1990s. The band released their first EP, The Detour, in 2001 and their first full-length album, Shake a Mountain, in 2004. The band began to receive national attention in Denmark around the time of the full-length release, and began...
Skiing
The valley hosted the 1970 FIS Alpine World Ski ChampionshipsFIS Alpine World Ski Championships 1970
The FIS Alpine World Ski Championships 1970 were held in Gröden/Val Gardena, Italy, from February 8-15, 1970.For the only time, results from the World Championships were included in the World Cup points standings, then in its fourth season.-External links:...
.
Val Gardena is home to the Saslong Classic, a men's World Cup downhill race that has been held almost every year since 1969
1969 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The third World Cup season began in December 1968 and concluded in March 1969. Karl Schranz of Austria won the first of two consecutive overall titles...
. Since 2002
2002 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 2002 Alpine Skiing World Cup began in October 2001 and ended in March 2002 at the World Cup finals held in Altenmarkt, Austria. The overall winners were Stephan Eberharter and Michaela Dorfmeister, both from Austria....
(and in 1983
1983 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 17th season of World Cup competition began in December 1982 in Switzerland and concluded in March 1983 in Japan. For the first time, the overall titles were won by two Americans, Tamara McKinney and Phil Mahre, who won his third consecutive overall title...
), the downhill has been paired with a super G race, and from 1979 to 1982 a combined
Alpine skiing combined
Combined is an alpine skiing event. Although not technically a discipline of its own, it is sometimes referred to as a fifth alpine discipline, along with downhill, super G, giant slalom, and slalom.-Traditional & Super-Combined:...
event was held. The Saslong course is considered one of the five "classic" men's downhill races, along with Garmisch-Partenkirchen
Garmisch-Partenkirchen
Garmisch-Partenkirchen is a mountain resort town in Bavaria, southern Germany. It is the administrative centre of the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, in the Oberbayern region, and the district is on the border with Austria...
's Kandahar (GER
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
), Kitzbühel
Kitzbühel
-Demographic evolution:-Personalities:*Karl Wilhelm von Dalla Torre , entomologist and botanist*Alfons Walde , expressionist painter and architect*Peter Aufschnaiter , mountaineer and geographer...
's Hahnenkamm
Hahnenkamm
Hahnenkamm may refer to*Hahnenkamm , a federation of municipalities in Bavaria, Germany*Hahnenkamm, Kitzbühel, a mountain in Tyrol, Austria*Hahnenkamm, Reutte, another mountain in Tyrol, Austria...
(AUT
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
), Wengen
Wengen
Wengen may refer to:*Wengen, a village and winter resort in Switzerland*La Val, a commune in South Tyrol, Italy with the German name "Wengen"*in Germany:**Wengen , a village in the municipality of Nennslingen in Mittelfranken...
's Lauberhorn
Lauberhorn
The Lauberhorn is a mountain in the Bernese Alps of Switzerland, located between Wengen and Grindelwald. Its summit is at an elevation of 8110 feet above sea level....
(SUI
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
), and Val d'Isere
Val d'Isère
Val d'Isère is a commune of the Tarentaise Valley, in the Savoie department in south-eastern France. It lies from the border with Italy. It is on the border of the Vanoise National Park created in 1963. The Face de Bellevarde was the scene of the men's downhill race as part of the 1992 Winter...
's Criterium (FRA
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
). It is well known for the "Camel Humps" (or "Bumps"), a series of three small jumps which racers must negotiate in quick succession. Two men have managed to win the Saslong title four times in a career: Austrian Franz Klammer
Franz Klammer
Franz Klammer is a former champion alpine ski racer. Klammer overwhelmingly dominated the downhill event for four consecutive World Cup seasons . He was the gold medalist at the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, winning the downhill at Patscherkofel in dramatic fashion...
(1975, two races in 1976, and 1982) and Italy's Kristian Ghedina
Kristian Ghedina
Kristian Ghedina is a former alpine ski racer, currently an auto racer. He was the most victorious downhill specialist ever for Italy in the Alpine skiing World Cup.-Career:...
(1996, 1998, 1999, and 2001). If super G wins are also included, two other men have matched that feat: Peter Müller
Peter Müller
Peter Müller may refer to:* Peter Mueller , NHL player for the Colorado Avalanche* Peter Mueller , former speed skater and speed skating coach from the United States...
of Switzerland and Austrian Michael Walchhofer
Michael Walchhofer
Michael Walchhofer is a former Austrian alpine ski racer. He started his career in slalom, but then moved over to the speed events. During his career he won the downhill world cup three times, one silver medal at Olympics Games, and one gold, two silver and one bronze medal at World Ski...
.
A women's slalom
Slalom skiing
Slalom is an alpine skiing discipline, involving skiing between poles spaced much closer together than in Giant Slalom, Super-G or Downhill, thereby causing quicker and shorter turns.- Origins :...
and parallel slalom were also held in 1975
1975 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 9th World Cup season began in December 1974 in France and concluded in March 1975 in Italy. Gustav Thöni of Italy would regain the overall title, his fourth overall title in five seasons...
.
Val Gardena is part of the Sella Ronda
Sella Ronda
The Sellaronda is the ski circuit around the Sella group.The Sella lies between the four Ladin valleys of Badia, Gherdëina, Fascia, and Fodom and is divided between the provinces of South Tyrol, Trentino and Belluno. It can be driven around by car crossing the Campolongo Pass, Pordoi Pass, Sella...
alpine ski touring
Ski touring
Ski touring is a form of backcountry skiing involving traveling over the winter landscape on skis under human power rather than through the assistance of ski lifts or snow vehicles. It can take place in terrain ranging from perfectly flat to extremely steep...
circuit.
Other sports
The Gardena Spring TrophyGardena Spring Trophy
The Gardena Spring Trophy is an annual international figure skating competition. It is held every spring in Val Gardena in Italy. Since its inception in 1990, it has been a junior-level competition. In 2006, it added a novice level competition...
is an annual international figure skating competition held every spring in the Valley.
Gardena has a Serie A2 ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
team, HCGardena
HCGardena
Hockey Club Gherdëina, also known as HC Gardena, is an Italian ice hockey-team, which plays in the Serie A2, the second level of the Italian ice hockey league system...
.
Notable residents
Carolina KostnerCarolina Kostner
Carolina Kostner is an Italian figure skater. She is a three-time World medalist , a three-time European champion , a three-time Grand Prix Final medalist , the 2003 World Junior bronze medalist, and a six-time Italian Champion.-Personal life:Carolina Kostner was born...
is a famous figure skater and cousin of Isolde Kostner
Isolde Kostner
Isolde Kostner is an Italian former Alpine skier who won two bronze medals at the 1994 Winter Olympics and 1 silver medal at 2002 Winter Olympics...
, the famous ski-champion.