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Last week saw some exciting events and deciders once again for our #hyloathletes. We take a look back at the last seven days’ events and competitions featuring our athletes, teams and clubs.
CONGRATULATIONS TO SVE ON A FANTASTIC SEASON
We are looking forward to another season in the 2. Fußball-Bundesliga with SV Elversberg. On Sunday (19 May 2024), SVE welcomed Karlsruher SC to the URSAPHARM arena on Kaiserlinde for the final day of second division play. In the sold-out arena with more than 9,500 spectators, the game ended 0:3 in favour of the visiting team, who came into the match the second-best team from the second half of the season.
Defeats are rarely as easy to brush off as this one: after SVE had finally secured their season goal of remaining in the league, sporting performance became only of statistical value. So this was the only downer on what was a celebratory final day. More details in our post-match report.
Instead, there was a festive mood and high spirits all round about what the team had achieved. Before the game had even started, there was a fan march to the stadium, arranged by the Elversberg fan club. The deserving departing players then officially received an emotional goodbye. And once the game was over, it was time to properly celebrate. All in all, Horst Steffen and his team have had an impressive first season following promotion to the second highest division in German professional football. With attractive offensive football and some inspiring play, the Saarland players have earned huge respect and recognition even from the most critical of football experts and won the hearts and loyalties of many football fans across Germany.
We would like to congratulate SV Elversberg on this exceptional premiere season in the 2. Bundesliga and are looking forward to their upcoming challenges.
FÜCHSE BERLIN AND JUNGFÜCHSE STILL ON TRACK FOR SUCCESS
On Saturday evening (18 May 2024), Füchse Berlin won their LIQUI MOLY HBL away game against TSV Hannover-Burgdorf 28:25 (14:13) in front of 9,087 spectators in the ZAG Arena. On the third-to-last day of play in the Handball Bundesliga, Hanover proved to be an unexpectedly difficult opponent right from the outset. In a tight duel where neither team could really establish a firm foothold throughout, the capital’s players kept their nerve and were able to retain their small lead right through to the final whistle. Given SG Flensburg-Handewitt’s defeat in Eisenach, this puts coach Jaron Siewert’s team in second place in the table, qualifying for next year’s Champions League eleven years after they last took part. Mathias Gidsel was the best scorer of the game with seven goals. With 255 field goals scored in a single season, Füchse Berlin’s world-class handball player has now broken South Korean player Yoon Kyung-shin’s previous Bundesliga record (248 field goals).
After this away success and securing qualification for the Champions League, the Berlin team now face the EHF European League final four in Hamburg and their mission to defend their title next weekend. Füchse are facing Rhein-Neckar Löwen in the semi-final on Saturday (25 May, 6 p.m.).
JUNGFÜCHSE CHASING THE TITLE
The two Jungfüchse youth teams both played their final first leg matches for the German Championships last week. On Friday (17 May), the Füchse junior B team beat the SC DHfK Leipzig juniors 38:24 (18:11) following a phenomenal performance in front of a sold-out crowd. Spurred on by their home crowd, the Berlin juniors played themselves into a frenzy in the final phase in particular, laying the groundwork perfectly for the second leg on Saturday (25 May) in Leipzig.
The capital club’s junior A team were also able to win their final first leg match last Saturday (18 May), against long-term rivals Rhein-Neckar-Löwen. Coach Norman Flödl’s team have thus established a small lead for the second leg on Friday (24 May) in Potsdam’s MBS Arena, in their third finals duel in a row for the German Championships.
HURRICANES A FEW CENTIMETRES FROM OPENING VICTORY
In a season opener with a nail-biting finish, the Saarland Hurricanes showcased their strengths despite suffering a narrow defeat. On Saturday (18 May 2024), the American football players from Saarland launched their German Football League (GFL) season with a dramatic game against the Berlin Rebels, suffering an unlucky 38:39 loss.
The Hurricanes put in a strong performance right from the outset. New quarterback Andrew Brito led the team with impressive passes and runs, producing a touchdown and a successful two-point conversion early in the game. The connection between Brito and his receivers, especially Nathaniel Gutierrez, ensured some exciting moments and put points on the scoreboard. The first half ended with an impressive 32:14 lead for the CANES.
The second half saw the Berlin players put in a strong defensive performance, allowing the Rebels to make a comeback. One minute before the end, the capital team had suddenly brought the score back to 39:32 in their favour. In the final minute of the game, the under-pressure Hurricanes showcased their ability to move the ball across the pitch effectively, and achieved a touchdown as the clock ran out. A controversial penalty resulted in a replay of the extra point attempt, with quarterback Brito almost reaching the end zone but being stopped just a few centimetres short.
Despite this defeat, the Saarland Hurricanes left the field with their heads held high, in the knowledge that they can take on any team in the league. They are now focussing on their next game against the Allgäu Comets on Sunday (26 May).
TEAM BIKE AID SUCCESSFUL IN GREECE
Saarland’s BIKE AID pro cycling team is continuing its successful streak. Last week (15 to 19 May 2024) was the Tour of Hellas (UCI 2.1), Greece’s official national tour race.
The tour began on Wednesday with a prologue in Thessaloniki, the second largest city in the country. Anton Schiffer won the climbing jersey in the fourth stage on Saturday and then successfully defended it through to the final stage on Sunday (19 May), ending in the capital city of Athens.
Cologne cyclist Anton Schiffer is currently one of the biggest German talents on the Continental Tour scene. He only began sport cycling in 2022. This year he has already finished seventh in the overall rankings at the Tour of Antalya (UCI 2.1), as well as second overall at the Zwift Academy, the world’s largest cycling scouting programme with more than 100,000 participants. This week sees the one-day classic ‘Rund um Köln’ (26 May), a home race for Anton Schiffer.
This is already BIKE AID’s third climbing jersey of the season: Yoel Habteab topped the climbing rankings at the Tour of Mersin and Vinzent Dorn took the jersey at the Tour of Turkey.
This makes us very proud and highlights how well positioned we currently are across the board – three climbing jerseys for three different athletes, still early on in the season. This means that we have achieved final jerseys, victories or top results in every single race we have entered.
Matthias Schnapka
The 2024 season is going extremely well for BIKE AID. The team has been able to achieve quantifiable results at every single race. They have taken yellow jerseys twice, gained multiple podium and top-ten finishes in overall rankings, and even achieved a UCI win. Nine of the twelve BIKE AID athletes currently have points in the world rankings, which also highlights the team’s broad skill base and puts the team at the top of the German Continental pile.
SAARLOUIS HORNETS WIN WATER WAR – GERMANY TAKES INTERNATIONALS
The Saarlouis Hornets defied the heavy storms in Saarland on Saturday and Sunday (18 and 19 May 2024) to enable some international baseball games.
After a long 17-year wait, international baseball finally returned to Saarland. It all happened last weekend: the Saarlouis Hornets hosted the German national baseball team at their ball park for two friendlies against France. Despite the threat of huge amounts of rainfall, the neighbours’ duel managed to take place on the Franco-German border.
At Friday lunchtime, it looked as if both games would be dead in the water. The Saarlouis Hornets ball park was flooded knee-deep. But the Hornets, headed by their president Florian Maaß, would not be discouraged. With the help of some twenty volunteers, they worked tirelessly on the pitch for around 35 hours and achieved the seemingly impossible: on Saturday morning, just a few hours before the match began, Maaß was able to announce that the games would go ahead.
Alongside the matches, the Hornets also organised a varied programme to ensure a fantastic experience for the 600 fans who attended the two games. Despite the flooding in Saarland, which prevented many spectators from getting to the stadium, the mood was exceptional.
Both teams put in exciting performances on the pitch. On the first day, the German team scored the first points in the third inning after a close start to the game, and took a 2:0 lead. They were able to develop and defend this lead through to the end of the game and a 4:2 score.
In the second game on Sunday, the German team put in a strong performance and took the lead following a home run by Danny Lankhorst. They were able to extend this lead to 8:0 during the game. Unfortunately, the game had to be halted at 8:1 in the eighth inning due to heavy rainfall.
Despite the premature ending, this was a fantastic weekend of baseball. The Saarlouis Hornets proved to be exceptional hosts and ensured an unforgettable experience despite the adverse conditions.
SVENJA THOES THIRD IN APFELLAND TRIATHLON
On Sunday (19 May 2024), Saarland triathlete Svenja Thoes lined up for the middle-distance OMNi-BiOTiC® Apfelland Triathlon in Steiermark, Austria. In ideal weather conditions, the IRONMAN champion completed the 1.9-km swim, 90-km cycle and subsequent half-marathon alongside the picturesque Stubenbergsee in a total time of 4:34:05 hours, securing third place and a podium spot at the awards ceremony.
Svenja herself was ‘happy with the swim’, achieved a top cycle time, and still sees potential for improvement in her running after a break of three and a half months, especially as she is still not entirely satisfied with her footwear.
MICHAEL LEDERMANN OUT OF LUCK AT SCHWINGFEST
The 119th Ob- und Nidwaldner Kantonalschwingfest 2024 in Lungern (CH) on Saturday (18 May 2024) was a great competition for Swiss wrestler Michael Ledermann.
The only thing lacking was a touch of luck to successfully close out the rounds and win. Michael was very close to swinging his opponents onto their backs several times, but each time the opponent got free at the last moment. This meant that he had to fight for the entire of each (six-minute) round, which also had a negative impact on his strength levels. Ledermann was never in danger of losing any of his fights. Ultimately he chalked up four draws and two wins on his ledger, putting him in eleventh place, where he missed out on a crown.
Saturday (25 May) sees Michael Ledermann at the Oberländisches Schwingfest in Brienz (CH), his next opportunity to showcase his skill and test his luck.
We are looking forward to upcoming appearances from our #hyloathletes and wish all of our HYLO® partners much luck and success.