Claus Dethloff Willl revolutionize German athletics

The German athletics bumps in mediocrity internationally at best. Germany has crashed enormously in the world rankings in recent years, in some disciplines the German Athletics Association no longer takes place at top events. The former world-class hammer thrower Claus Dethloff wants to stop the downward trend with many new ideas. But there are considerable resistance.

The North Rhine Championships in Duisburg at the end of June were very successful for Claus Dethloff and his people. The athletes cleared 30 medals from the Cologne and Düsseldorf Athletics. But it wasn’t quite cheap either. Dethloff pays 300 euros for a gold medal, his protégés receive 150 euros for second or three.

“It was a very decent chunk. But we like to pay this money. Because we consider it an investment in German athletics”, says the 56-year-old.

Claus Dethloff – controversial maker

The former world -class hammer thrower – Dethloff was there at WM’s and Olympic Games at active times – is considered one of the most controversial people in German athletics. His criticism of the state of “his” sport and the responsible German athletics association is sometimes harsh. “We lack ideas in German athletics. And the courage to do something new”, he says.

In 2021, Dethloff founded the Cologne Athletics to change things. Under the umbrella brand “Germany Athletics”, three other locations were added in Düsseldorf (2023), Ostwestfalen-Lippe (2024) and Frankfurt (2024). Athletics also exist on paper in Munich, Nuremberg, Stuttgart and Leipzig. Actors can start there from January 1, 2026. The cities of Berlin and Hamburg should also join the franchise. His athletes are already conspicuously successful.

The athletics – new competition for top dogs

With the athletics franchise, a completely new competition is created within the German club’s arbitration-established clubs from Leverkusen, Munich, Frankfurt, Dortmund, Halle or Wattenscheid are currently losing top athletes and thus also medals. Among other things, the top high jumpers Tobias Potye and Imke Onnen have moved to Cologne, most recently top sprinter Alexandra Burghardt came.

Criticism comes from Munich: “Competition can be productive – if it is fair. In this case, however, we experience a model that tries to get a lead through access to already fully developed athletes”, “ criticizes Julia Riedl, managing director of LG Stadtwerke Munich. “The recruitment of our top athletes Yannick Wolf or Tobias Potye last year did without our participation, coordination or support of the previous structures that have made their development possible”so Riedl opposite the sports show.

“The focus should be on athletes”

Nothing wrong in Dethloff’s eyes. “The active people came up to us. We wanted to change. he says. It was lacking in this in recent years and with other clubs. Too much money was invested in administration and associations and too little in athletes and trainers – according to Dethloff.

A criticism of Dtehloff’s system is that its athletics in the cities rely on the use of existing infrastructure. You don’t have your own sports facilities. The franchise construct Dethloffs can be seen accordingly reluctantly at the German Athletics Association: “In the past, too, new clubs with new funding concepts have emerged. It will be interesting to observe how the interaction between traditional and new clubs is designed with each other and with the state associations”, “ the deputy media director Silke Bernhart lets the ARD sports show know.

Athletics league For more media presence

Dethloffs also has a second plan in the quiver: the foundation of a kind of athletics league. A competition series in which German cities compete against each other and ultimately choose a German champion. “What is offered here in Germany at athletics events is not attractive, there is a lot of idling and the set of rules is too complicated.” He gives an example: “For example the high jump: No viewer knows how many jumps a jumper has and why the ranking later failed. The form of representation is simply not attractive.”

Dethloff: “I think a league system with competitions at a manageable time intervals, where the streaming service provider also works professionally, this hot sport is just good.”

DLV reacts behavior

Here too: The German Athletics Association reacts rather nasty: “In the event of considerations of new competition formats, it is important to achieve real added value for athletics and always consider the framework conditions that the German Athletics Ordinance specifies”, ” so Bernhart.

However, Dethloff learns support from another competitor, the LG Olympia Dortmund: “It is obvious that we have severe structural problems in German athletics”, says Michael Adel, chairman of the Dortmund. Such a series could actually help to make German athletics more visible and thus more interesting for sponsors.

“Time is pushing. Something has to happen!”

But nobility believes in a deeper problem: “We have fewer and fewer children and adolescents who opt for body athletics. It is clear that in the end fewer top athletes come out of the funding than it was years ago. This problem is not solved by the establishment of new clubs.”

Dethloff finds: Time is pushing. “Something has to happen. Athletics behind football is still the second most popular TV sport in Germany. It won’t be long if we do not change our structures as soon as possible.”

“Need money from the economy”

He is convinced: “If we want to get more medals again internationally, we need a much more intensive promotion of high-performance sport. The top athletes and their trainers need better conditions.” He is certain: “For this we need money that has to come from the economy. However, in order to become attractive for sponsors, we need a World Cup more than once a year and every four years of the Olympic Games.”