Chronicle: Legion and Christmas in the Distance

Rossi played the home game for the Minnesota Wild against the Boston Bruins on December 23 (3-2 win) and returned to action against the Detroit Red Wings on the 27th after three days of not playing. Poeltl also participated in Saturday's game for the Toronto Raptors in front of their fans against the Utah Jazz (119:126 defeat) and has to go to the Washington Wizards four days later.

So Poeltl will celebrate with his family in Canada. “I really appreciate that my family is in Toronto and will be here for Christmas. The days off can be used to spend time together and celebrate Christmas,” the Vienna resident said.

Prepare for the season instead of the holidays

Meanwhile, ice hockey player Teresa Chavzal will celebrate Christmas in America for the first time. The 23-year-old is preparing with Boston for the launch of the new professional women's league, the PWHL, at the beginning of the year. Players have four days off, so a trip home won't pay off.

“I won't be coming to Austria this Christmas, that's a shame. But there are also other Europeans, Canadians and Americans from far away in the team. There will be a lot of players there, and we will deal with something together,” said Chavzal.

Obock celebrates twice

Swimmer Felix Opock celebrates Christmas Eve with his family in Lower Austria before heading to the USA on Christmas Day. “I'm lucky that it's celebrated in the United States on the 25th,” the 27-year-old said. Given the time difference, it's always possible he'll be there again with his American girlfriend, swimmer Katie. D-Love celebrates Christmas. Obock, whose training base is in England, does not have a longer break than a holiday, but he will not have one this year as he trains for the World Cup in February.

Tennis player Dominic Thiem will spend Christmas not under a Christmas tree, but under a palm tree. The former world number three will complete a preparatory camp in Dubai during the Advent and Christmas period, and the Lower Austrian will head to Australia on December 25.

Celebrate with a sea view

Christmas abroad is no longer unusual for basketball player Luka Brajkovic. From 2018 to 2021, the Vorarlberg resident spent his vacation in the United States, where he studied at Davidson College. Last year, he celebrated the festival with his family in his first stop as a professional in Lugo, Spain. This time there was a championship match in Athens for him and his club Colossus of Rhodes on 23 December.

The 24-year-old said he would not return to the Greek holiday island where he lives in Faliraki until Christmas Eve. Brajkovic will not put a Christmas tree in his seaside apartment. To do this, he planned to make phone calls to his family in Feldkirch and to friends.

Christmas, a time for crowded golf courses

However, there is a Christmas in Styria for golfer Lukas Nemecz. Between the start of the season at the end of November in Australia and the World Tour Championships in January in the UAE, the 34-year-old will spend the end of the year with his family in Graz. Drivers and putters are put aside during the holidays. “I definitely won't be on the golf course at Christmas. I did it once, on December 26, I went to play golf in Loebersdorf. I've never seen so many people on the golf course in my life,” Nemecz said.

Christmas gives Kiel's Mykola Bielik the chance to take his last breath before the European Championships in Germany, which start on January 11. It also feels unusual and therefore nicer. “We usually have matches between Christmas and New Year's Eve and there is no time to go home. This year we will celebrate with our families and return to Vienna for the first time in what seems like an eternity.”