By Sam Tonks
The summer of athletics brought a wealth of nationalities to London Stadium, introducing new stars to the stage. West Ham United have also been acquiring new talent to play on the Stratford turf, one of them is Marko Arnautovic. Arnautovic is one of the biggest names in Austrian sport, but there are a few others who have graced London Stadium, here are five of the best.
Marko Arnautovic
Starting with the man himself, ‘Arnie’ as Stoke fans used to nickname him, will soon play on London Stadium’s pitch in Claret and Blue. A club record fee of £20 million took the winger south from Stoke City. 19 goals and 12 assists over the last two campaigns at the Bet365 Stadium made Slaven Bilic move for the outlandish winger.
He hasn’t hit the ground running yet for the Hammers, but is sure to make an impact when he eventually makes his home debut.
Gunther Matzinger
A world record holder in the T47 400m, outside of football he’s the country's star sportsman. The para-athlete won double gold in the 2012 Paralympics, 400m and 800m, when London Stadium was born. Matzinger rekindled memories with 400m victory again in this summer’s IPC Para World Athletic Championships.
Christian Fuchs
The eighth most capped player in Austrian history and the captain at Euro 2016, Fuchs is recognised most for playing a key role in Leicester City’s fairy-tale title triumph.
A starter in last season’s five goal thriller at London Stadium, he is one of the best left-backs in the top flight. With only two goals in English football, he focuses more on his defensive duties, but is very capable of overlapping to cross into the likes of Jamie Vardy. Leicester next visit London Stadium on 24th November.
Bil Marinkovic
Austria has enjoyed far more success in IPC competitions than IAAF. Marinkovic claimed silver in the F11 Discus at London Stadium this summer, as well as bronze in the 2012 Paralympics. A competitor in the Javelin also, he’s the current world record holder, unfortunately he didn’t break it again in London.
His only gold medal was in the 2004 Paralympics in Athens, where he broke the world record in the process.
Ivona Dadic
The 23-year-old Heptathlete is an upcoming talent in Austrian sport. Bronze medallist in last year’s European Championships, Dadic set a national record in London Stadium this summer in her debut world championships, finishing sixth in the field.
A European Indoor Championship silver medallist, she is progressing into consistent major competitions following her Olympic debut back in 2012, where she ended in 25th place.
