125 years of organized mountaineering in Slovenia
Author: Manca Čujež
125 years after the establishment the Alpine Association of Slovenia is among the most numerous non-governmental organizations in Slovenia, and the most numerous sports organization. The anniversary was celebrated in Ljubljana on 27 February 2018. Morning meeting with the Slovenian Prime Minister was followed by the reception for related organizations, state institutions and business partners, and in the afternoon in the presence of numerous representatives of mountain clubs there was the opening ceremony of the new AAS offices in Ljubljana.
The Slovenian Mountaineering Society, the predecessor to the Alpine Association of Slovenia, was founded on 27 February 1893 and its 125th anniversary was marked with numerous events. Top members of the association met with the Slovenian prime minister Dr. Miro Cerar and visited the commemorative plaque at the founding place of the Slovenian Mountaineering Society, where they placed flowers. Members of related organizations, state institutions, and business partners visited the new offices of the Alpine Association of Slovenia (Ob železnici 30 a, Ljubljana), where our organization received a health-friendly company certificate. In the afternoon, the 125th anniversary of our mountaineering association was celebrated by numerous members of our community, who were tremendously excited about the new offices.
Top members of the association met with the Slovenian prime minister Dr. Miro Cerar (photo by Nejc Šporin)
Today, 125 years after its formation, the Alpine Association of Slovenia includes 290 clubs. During the organization’s most successful years, every 20th Slovenian was a member, while currently, every 35th Slovenian has a membership card, which means that there’re a little over 57,000 members. The Alpine Association is, therefore, the biggest sports organization in Slovenia and one of the largest non-governmental and volunteering organizations in the country. Its clubs are in charge of 181 mountain huts, shelters, and bivouacs, along with maintaining a network of mountain trails which cover more than 10,000 km across the whole country. The Alpine Association also works at protecting the mountain nature and increasing the safety in the mountains, along with organizing various education courses and events aimed at the promotion of mountaineering culture. The Planinski vestnik magazine has been published since 1895, making it the oldest Slovenian magazine still being printed. The Aljaž Turrent at the top of Triglav was built the same year, and Slovenia’s highest mountain, which is also the strongest national symbol of all Slovenians, was first summited exactly 240 years ago.
Celebration of the 125th anniversary of Slovenian mountaineering association (photo by Manca Čujež)
Slovenian alpinism and competitive sports that are governed by the Alpine Association of Slovenia – sport climbing, ice climbing and ski mountaineering – are experiencing incredible results at the world stage, as well as attracting countless recreational participants. Recently, we’ve also updated our online system, which includes all mountaineering clubs. We’ve digitalized the records of all mountain trails, introduced various options of obtaining membership (online, at gas stations, with gift cards), and increased our presence on social media platforms. Despite being a traditional organization, the Alpine Association of Slovenia is by no means afraid of embracing modern developments.
New home for all mountain lovers from Slovenia and abroad (photo by Manca Čujež)
“125 years ago, the Slovenian Mountaineering Society, the predecessor to the Alpine Association of Slovenia, was founded. Its members and leaders were great patriots who were passionate about the outdoors and they made sure that Slovenian mountains remained in the hands of Slovenians. Our organization has lived through four different political systems and has grown to become one of the largest and most active non-governmental organizations in Slovenia. As an introduction to this festive year, we’re opening the new offices of the Alpine Association of Slovenia, which we are extremely happy about. They are functional and accessible and they’ll make it possible to organize some of the educational courses and carry out most of the organizational work from one place. We’d also like these new offices to become a meeting point for all mountain lovers within the urban environment of our capital,” said the president of the Alpine Association of Slovenia, Bojan Rotovnik.
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Sedemindvajsetega februarja, stoletje in četrt od ustanovitve Slovenskega planinskega društva, je Planinske zveza Slovenije (PZS), najbolj množična športna organizacija v državi, počastila 125 let organiziranega planinstva na Slovenskem. Srečanju s predsednikom vlade Mirom Cerarjem je sledil sprejem za sorodne organizacije, državne institucije in poslovne partnerje ter v prisotnosti številnih predstavnikov planinskih društev nato še svečano odprtje novih prostorov PZS na naslovu Ob železnici 30 a v Ljubljani
Manca Čujež
