Young Beekeepers’ National Championship in Salzburg
From May 30th to June 1st, the Tamsweg Agricultural College hosted the Young Beekeepers’
National Championship. The state of the event changes every year, and this year it was Salzburg
that hosted it. 25 young people from all over the country traveled to demonstrate their extensive
knowledge and practical skills – at the highest level.
Right at the beginning, the participants had to demonstrate their knowledge of beekeeping in a
challenging theory test. Here, they had to answer 50 tricky questions and thus earn the
important 50 points towards the final score.
The exciting practical day followed on Saturday. A total of 13 stations awaited the young
beekeepers. Among other things, they had to identify forage plants, name bee products, draw
drones, identify honey varieties, classify microscope images, and explain beekeeping tools.
Practical work with bee colonies was also required, as was the recognition and prevention of
diseases and the proper preparation and execution of bee transport.
10 points could be achieved at each of the 13 stations. As a sporting activity, archery was
offered in the afternoon, where many participants were able to demonstrate their accuracy. The
day concluded with a cozy barbecue, before the highlight of the weekend took place in the
evening: the awards ceremony.
Two first-place finishers and a strong field
This year’s national championship brought a special surprise: two participants claimed first
place. Kilian Steer (Styria) and Fabio Rieder (Vorarlberg) achieved exactly the same number of
points (172.5 out of a possible 180) and thus deservedly shared the title of national champion.
Third place was also shared by two: Elija Raab (Lower Austria) and Matthias Schaidreiter
(Salzburg) also achieved exactly the same number of points.
Overall, all participants demonstrated tremendous commitment and impressive knowledge. The
nine best young beekeepers can now look forward to a special award: They have been
nominated for the German-speaking beekeeping competition in Bavaria, which will take place in
September.
The winners are:
1st place: Fabio Rieder (Vorarlberg) & Kilian Steer (Styria)
3rd place: Elija Raab (Lower Austria) & Matthias Schaidreiter (Salzburg)
5th place: Lukas Maurer (Styria)
6th place: Valerie Asprian (Tyrol)
7th place: David Kienberger (Styria)
8th place: Lia Marie Tache (Lower Austria)
9th place: Alexander Greunig (Vorarlberg)
With this successful weekend, Austria’s young beekeepers once again demonstrated that
beekeeping is in the best hands with the next generation and that their expertise and work
methods are extremely impressive. The next national championship will take place in Vorarlberg
in 2026.
Ing. Andrea Lenzhofer, BEd.
