What’s new from the HYLO® Sports family
There is plenty going on for the #hyloathletes. We take a look back at the latest events and competitions in recent days featuring our athletes, teams and clubs.
Athlete of the year – multiple #hyloathletes honoured
It is the season to look back, review and take stock of things. The year is coming to a close and the sporting world traditionally takes this opportunity to crown its very best.
Lukas Dauser named German athlete of the year 2023
Artistic gymnast and DTB team athlete Lukas Dauser was named Germany’s athlete of the year 2023 at a celebratory gala in the Kurhaus in Baden-Baden on Sunday evening (17 December 2023). The 30-year-old (1,753 points) came in well ahead of swimmer Florian Wellbrock (1,062) and three-time rowing world champion Oliver Zeidler (865). In October, Dauser became Germany’s first world gymnastics champion since 2007. At the world championships in Antwerp, the German team gymnast sensationally won a gold medal for Germany on the parallel bars, the first title on this apparatus for 38 years. This success was made even more rewarding by the fact that the elite athlete was only just fit in time for the world championships following a shoulder injury.
Accolades for #hyloathletes at the 2023 Saarland athlete awards
Saarland has also been honouring its finest athletes: the VSS (Saarland sports journalists’ association) crowned Saarland’s athletes of the year at a gala in the Gebläsehalle in Neunkirchen on Saturday evening (16 December 2023).
Tim Hellwig wins for the men
In the men’s category, darts pro Gabriel Clemens, triathlete Tim Hellwig and open water swimmer and English Channel world record holder Andreas Waschburger all represented the HYLO® Sports family as nominations. 24-year-old Tim Hellwig of HYLO® Team Saar was voted Saar athlete of the year 2023. This year, the triathlete was able to win a gold in the mixed relay at the world championships in Hamburg, Germany’s first major relay win at the world championships for ten years. Hellwig also gained numerous top finishes at world cup races and qualified for the 2024 Olympics in Paris, before gaining two world cup wins in China and South Korea to round off the season.
1. FCS Tischtennis wins in the team category
All three teams nominated also came from the HYLO® Sports family. Alongside 2023 German team champions in badminton BC Bischmisheim and 2. Fußball-Bundesliga promoted heroes SV Elversberg, the award went to 2023 Champions League winners 1. FC Saarbrücken Tischtennis. The panel of Saarland sports journalists chose FCS TT and named Patrick Franziska and Darko Jorgic’s squad the 2023 team of the year. With the first top-level European table tennis win in the team’s history, the Saarland players have achieved a historic feat and caused a sensation across the globe.
TG Saar gymnast Maxim Kovalenko named young athlete of the year
18-year-old TG Saar gymnast Maxim Kovalenko was named Saarland young athlete of the year 2023 in Neunkirchen. He is one of the ‘young bucks’ on the Saarland gymnastics team, and alongside Daniel Mousichidis is one of the greatest talents in German gymnastics. This year he won gold on the vault at the German youth championships, gold on the vault at the DTP cup juniors, and silver on the vault in his first senior German championships at the FINALS 2023. He and TG Saar finished in third place after the small league final in early December.
SVE coach Horst Steffen named coach of the year 2023
Another Saarland athlete of the year 2023 prize went to SV Elversberg’s coach Horst Steffen. This prize, awarded for the first time, honours the work of a trainer who has overseen ongoing further development at SVE since 2018, and last year was at the helm of a sensational march from the regional league straight through the third league into the second. The 54-year-old football instructor played a major part in this success.
Füchse Berlin celebrate cup progress and a vital comeback
On Tuesday (12 December 2023), Füchse Berlin managed to reach the quarter finals of the DHB cup for the first time since 2019 following a 42:33 win (19:16) over second-league team SG BBM Bietigheim. The best scorer among the Berlin handball players was once again Mathias Gidsel with eleven goals, alongside Tim Freihöfer who successfully landed all seven attempts. The capital team are looking forward to a home game for the quarter finals: they will be hosting VfL Gummersbach in the Max-Schmeling-Halle on 3 or 4 February.
On Saturday evening (16 December 2023), Füchse won their last away game of the year against TBV Lemgo Lippe 32:29 (17:16) and remain level-pegging with Magdeburg at the top of the LIQUI MOLY HBL table. Dejan Milosavljev (16 saves) and Mathias Gidsel (10 goals) were vital to the capital club’s success. Delight at the club’s successful performance in the Handball Bundesliga was topped by the Berlin captain’s long-awaited comeback. It happened in the 14th minute of the game: after more than seven months, captain Paul Drux celebrated his return to playing with Füchse Berlin. The DHB team defender tore his Achilles tendon in April, and is now back defending for the first time. Welcome back, Paul!
The Berlin handball players’ year comes to an end this year with two home games against TVB Stuttgart on Tuesday and Leipzig on Friday evening (22 December).
SV Elversberg ends a magnificent year with an away defeat
SV Elversberg suffered an unlucky defeat in their last game of the year on Sunday (17 December 2023) against Karlsruher SC. The team under coach Horst Steffen ultimately had to concede a 3:2 loss at the Karlsruher Wildparkstadion, despite good chances and an irrepressible fighting spirit. More details in our post-match report.
SVE finish 2023 as the best promoted team, with 24 points and ninth place in the 2. Bundesliga. Although the away defeat was painful, 2023 has been a remarkable year for SVE, marked by an impeccable promotion and overall an impressive first half of the season in the second league!
SVE return after the winter break on 20 January 2024 with a home gain against Hannover 96.
1. FCS Tischtennis: vital win and end of a streak
On Thursday evening (14 December 2023), 1. FC Saarbrücken Tischtennis fairly effortlessly won their penultimate Champions League group match 3:1 against A.S PONTOISE-CERGY TT of France in front of a home crowd at the Joachim-Deckarm-Halle. The reigning Champions League winners thus remain unbeaten in three games, and have made a major step forward towards the first final four in the men’s Champions League, being held in Saarbrücken next year.
Against the weakened French team, who had to manage without their Korean top player, the Saarland players did not have much trouble with two wins for Darko Jorgic and one for captain Patrick Franziska. Only Cédric Nuytinck lost his game against Marcos Freitas. The return leg against A.S PONTOISE-CERGY TT will be played on Thursday (21 December) this week.
Unfortunately, last Sunday (17 December) things came to an end: 1. FCS TT’s winning streak finished on the tenth day of Tischtennis-Bundesliga (TTBL) play in Bremen when the Saarland team were beaten 3:1 by Werder Bremen, marking their first defeat of the season. Without team captain Patrick Franziska, who once again had to leave early due to illness with the mission unaccomplished, this time they did not manage a repeat win against the Bremen team, who they were able to defeat 3:0 in their cup match three weeks ago. FCS Tischtennis are in second place in the league, behind unbeaten team Borussia Düsseldorf.
There is now a Tischtennis Bundesliga showdown on the eleventh day of play: Borussia Düsseldorf is welcoming 1. FC Saarbrücken TT to Hamburg for Christmas on Wednesday (27 December).
Double win for BC Bischmisheim
Eleven-time German badminton team champions BC Bischmisheim are heading into the new year following a successful double-header: the Saarland players managed to win both their last two home games of the year 6:1 at the Joachim-Deckarm-Halle in Saarbrücken.
On Friday (15 December 2023), BCB beat 1. BC Beuel 6:1. This was followed on Saturday (16 December) with another home win for BC Bischmisheim against Blau-Weiss Wittorf, also 6:1. This takes the Saarland team into the break in third place in the league, snapping at the heels of the leading two teams from just two points behind. The federal league season next year begins with another double-header for the team with national squad athletes Isabel Lohau and Linda Efler as well as Marvin Seidel from St. Ingbert. The Saarland players begin on Saturday (27 January 2024) at SG Schorndorf and then face TSV Neuhausen-Nymphenburg München for their second game of the weekend on the following day (28 January).
Happy ending to the first half of the season for Saarlouis Royals
The last home game before Christmas was also the last game of the first half of the Damen-Basketball-Bundesliga (DBBL) 2023/24 season for the Saarlouis Royals. On Sunday (17 December 2023), the basketball players from Saarlouis welcomed DBBL stalwarts BC Pharmaserv Marburg. This was a league classic: the game was as exciting as expected, with the Saarland team ultimately winning 73:67.
This vital win gives the Saarlouis Royals a boost from eleventh to ninth in the table, putting them just a short step away from a playoff place. After their false start, this marks a happy ending to the first half of the season. The Royals have managed to win three of their last four games. The Royals’s top scorer on Sunday was once again Destiny Littleton with 26 points (4 of 5 three-pointers, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 26 efficiency points), followed by Isabelle Spingola (15 points, 5 rebounds, 3 steals, 18 efficiency points) and Naomi Mbandu (13 points, 2 rebounds, 2 steals, 11 efficiency points).
The year is still not over for the Saarlouis basketball team, by some margin: on Saturday (23 December) they begin the second half of the season with an away game against Rutronik Stars Keltern, and then the day before New Year’s Eve on Saturday (30 December), they face the women of GISA LIONS MBC in front of a home crowd.
proWIN Volleys bring home a point
For their 2. Damen-Volleyball-Bundesliga Süd away game on Saturday (16 December 2023), the TV Holz volleyball players of the proWIN Volleys faced their next-placed league team MTV Ludwigsburg in what felt like a ‘six-pointer’ to round off this half of the season. Things did not look encouraging for the Saarland players, as four players were completely absent and four others had to make the journey with injuries.
In an extremely exciting, evenly matched game, the Holz volleyball team ultimately had to concede defeat 3:2. Control of the game changed from set to set (25:14 23:25 25:19 19:25 15:13), but the deciding fifth set ultimately went to their Ludwigsburg opponents as they performed better at the end of the tie break. However, promoted 2. Liga team the Volleys chalked up another vital point for the final reckoning in their battle to remain in the league. The Volleys’ MVP for the game was Mylana Byrd.
The second half of the season for proWIN Volleys begins on 14 January 2024 with an away game against SV Lohhof.
We are looking forward to upcoming appearances from our #hyloathletes and wish all of our HYLO® partners much luck and success.