1947: Catch Wrestling at the Heumarkt

Heumarkt catch wrestling refers to a long-lived entertainment phenomenon that established itself in the immediate postwar period. These were tournaments of professional wrestlers lasting several weeks, which were organised on the grounds of the Vienna Ice Skating Club in the summer months. The primary goal of the fights – a mix of sports, acrobatics and elements of comedy – was to amuse spectators, and they soon became an attraction in Vienna that thrilled the masses. A festival atmosphere prevailed at the Heumarkt when the international wrestling elite visited Vienna from June to August. There were about 40 to 60 fight nights held each summer, with up to 15,000 people attending daily.

From the second half of the 1960s, organisers were confronted with declining visitor numbers due to newly emerging leisure activities available in urban areas.

Audience favourite George “Schurl” Blemenschütz managed the tournament for several decades and even entered the ring until the ripe age of 70. In the 1980s, “Big Otto” Wanz took over the organisation of the fights. The last tournament was hosted at the Heumarkt in 1997. Thereafter, the legendary fight spectacle disappeared from the city's sports and entertainment landscape. During its five decades, more than a thousand wrestlers – including several female wrestlers – sent audiences into a frenzy.