Friedrich Josef Lienhard "Fritz" Dinkhauser (born 16 April 1940) is an

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

n politician. Born in

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; ) is the capital of Tyrol (federal state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the Wipptal, Wipp Valley, which provides access to the ...

, he competed in sports in his youth and won the

Tyrol Tyrol ( ; historically the Tyrole; ; ) is a historical region in the Alps of Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Empire and Austria-Hungary, f ...

state championship in the

hammer throw The hammer throw (HT for short) is one of the four throwing events in regular outdoor track-and-field competitions, along with the discus throw, shot put and Javelin throw, javelin. The hammer used in this sport is not like any of the tools a ...

on six occasions and represented Austria at the 1968 Winter Olympics in the

bobsleigh Bobsleigh or bobsled is a winter sport in which teams of 2 to 4 athletes make timed speed runs down narrow, twisting, banked, iced tracks in a gravity-powered sleigh. International bobsleigh competitions are governed by the International Bobslei ...

. At that competition he placed eighth in the two-man bob with Max Kaltenberger and 13th in the four-man event.Fritz Dinkhauser: Kämpfer und Polemiker
. Tirol. Retrieved on 2016-04-14. After retiring from sports he entered politics through the

labour movement The labour movement is the collective organisation of working people to further their shared political and economic interests. It consists of the trade union or labour union movement, as well as political parties of labour. It can be considere ...

, working as secretary for ÖAAB Tyrol, which was a socialist Christian

trade union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

body associated with the

Austrian People's Party The Austrian People's Party ( , ÖVP ) is a Christian-democratic and liberal-conservative political party in Austria. Since January 2025, the party has been led by Christian Stocker (as an acting leader). It is currently the second-largest p ...

. He worked as kammerrat for the Tyrol-level

Austrian Chamber of Labour The Chamber of Labour (German: ''Kammer für Arbeiter und Angestellte'', shortform ''Arbeiterkammer'' or ''AK''), is an organisation that represents the interests of 4 million Austrian employees and consumers. Membership is compulsory for all em ...

in 1979 and served as the vice-chairman of that body from 1985 to 1989. He became regional chairman in 1991 then, after a brief period as national vice chairman, rose to head the ÖAAB nationally in 1994. He founded

Citizens' Forum Austria The Citizens' Forum Austria (, FRITZ) is an Austrian political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar idea ...

in 2008 for the Tyrolean state election that year and became a member of the

Tyrolean Parliament Tyrolean may refer to: * Anything from Tyrol (state) (Austria), South Tyrol (Italy) or the historical County of Tyrol or region of Tyrol * Tyrolean Zugspitze Cable Car * Tyrolean Airways * Tyrolean hat * Tyrolean traverse, mountaineering manoeuvr ...

. He later stood nationally, but his party did not receive sufficient votes to enter

Austrian Parliament The Austrian Parliament () is the bicameral federal legislature of Austria. It consists of two chambers – the National Council and the Federal Council. In specific cases, both houses convene as the Federal Assembly. The legislature meets i ...

. He was given the

Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria The Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria () is a state decoration of the Republic of Austria. It is divided into 15 classes and is the highest award in the Austrian national honours system. History The Decoration of Hono ...

in 2007.10542/AB XXIV. GP Eingelangt am 23.04.2012 Bundeskanzler Anfragebeantwortung
. Parlament.gv.at. Retrieved on 2016-04-14.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dinkhauser, Fritz Living people 1940 births Politicians from Innsbruck Austrian People's Party politicians Austrian male bobsledders Austrian male hammer throwers Recipients of the Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria Bobsledders at the 1968 Winter Olympics Olympic bobsledders for Austria Sportspeople from Innsbruck 20th-century Austrian sportsmen