German athletics is in the deepest slump in its history. The EC host city in Munich has a handsome stadium, but the sport in Bavaria is the size of Mickey Mouse.
Never has German athletics fared as badly as at the World Championships in Eugene in July.
– We are in quite a crisis in Germany, sums up the essential Berlin-based athletics expert of Iltalehti Arto Bryggare.
United Germany participated in the World Championships in Tokyo for the first time in 1991. There were no fewer than 17 medals.
Even at the end of the last millennium, Germany was a world power in athletics. Ten medals at the 1997 Games in Athens, half of which were gold, qualified for second place in the medal table. In Sevilla 1999, the balance (4–4–4) was enough for the third place in the statistics.
– Now we are considered tourists. German track and field fans and the media are very critical when we are in Eugene. But I can assure you that no one is on a tourist trip. The whole team has had an extraordinary amount of bad luck, commented the German javelin star who suffered from a confusing back injury Andreas Hofmann three weeks ago in the United States.
For the first time, the German men went without a World Cup medal at the event in Eugene. The women got gold and bronze.
– In particular, there are shortcomings in coaching. When East and West Germany were united, bad things happened. It was thought that everything that comes from the East is wrong, and the West is right, says Bryggare.
– It wasn’t like that. Although there were sad things in the East, there were many things that were done right. For example, the sports school system was of high quality, but now it is buried, the expert continues.
He tells the example of his spouse Heike from Drechsler-Bryggare.
– Heike lived in a boarding school from the age of 12. That’s when we did what we’re talking about now: we got the children moving. There was organized sports under coaching. And the result came. I wouldn’t be taking children to boarding schools now, but there would be a lot of things to learn from that system.
Drechsler-Bryggare, who grew up in the GDR, is one of the world’s most successful track and field athletes. The resume of the hugely versatile athlete includes, among other things, five Olympic and six World Championship medals, as well as five European Championship golds.
Fall spiral
The Munich Olympic Stadium is a descriptive building. It is especially famous for its unique roof structure. AOP
Germany’s collapse has been quick, as it still won 19 medals at the 2018 Berlin European Championships and six at the World Championships in Doha a year later.
The injuries of top athletes explain part of the current situation. Among other things, spear aces Johannes Vetter and Christine Hussong and hurdler Gesa Krause have been sick.
– Coaching has not developed in Germany and the country’s athletics team is very fragmented. There is no common red thread, Bryggare estimates.
– The basic problem is the same as in Finland: ball sports, especially soccer in Germany, suck the best talents. On the other hand, 84 million people are some kind of resource, he continues.
Mickey Mouse
The EC competition stage is located in a cozy Olympic park. PASI LEISMA
From Monday, European championship medals will be competed for in the country’s ball-playing capital, Munich. Bayern’s football and basketball teams are trash in their respective sports. Handball and ice hockey are also strong sports in the city.
Munich is at the foot of the German winter sports centers Garsmich-Partenkirchen, Oberstdorf and Ruhpolding.
– Athletics in the Bavarian region is weak. It is a development area. The Ruhr region and the Berlin region are the strongest in Germany in athletics.
However, the capital of the state of Bavaria is the organizer of the EC athletics competitions for the second time this millennium.
– This year’s event is purely because of 1972, Bryggare announces – and hits the spot.
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Olympic Games in Munich. The event is “celebrated” during the EC week, when the European championships of ten different sports are held in the city.
– Athletics wants to be involved in the week, because it was successful in Berlin in 2018. We are now enthusiastic about the concept, since the previous time there were high TV viewership figures and it worked in Germany during the holiday season.
Important for Finland
Lasse Viré’s pace at the 10th ton in Munich at the 1972 Games. AOP
Pekka Vasala won the 1,500-meter Olympic gold 50 years ago. AOP
The athletics competitions are held in an important place for Finns.
The tenth day of September in 1972 is perhaps the most memorable in Finnish Olympic sports, when first Lasse Virén won the 5,000 meters at the Munich Olympics and soon after Pekka Vasala 1,500 meters.
– The conditions in Munich are great. Anyone who visits the Olympic stadium will notice that thought has been used in the construction. For example, the fact that the stadium is in a hole and is not so sensitive to winds has served as a model for many stadiums built later.
The Munich Olympic Stadium was completed 50 years ago as the main stage for the five-ring event. Famous for its spectacular roof structure, the stadium was designed by an old SS man Günter Behnisch. The architect, who died in 2010, also designed many other famous buildings in his home country during his working career. Among other things, the plenary session building of the German Parliament in Bonn comes from a man’s pen.
– A very descriptive place. You could say the Sydney Opera House of the Olympic stadiums, Bryggare says, referring to the original Australian building.
The Munich Olympic Stadium is located in a green and pleasant Olympic Park, which has venues for many different sports.
If you’re looking for an example from Finland, the atmospheric Turku Kupittaa sports park has a bit of the same – of course on a much more modest scale.
Even some comfort
Long jumper Malaika Mihambo is the reigning Olympic champion, world champion and European champion. AOP
Finally, let’s get back to the core of sports with results.
The most modest EC medal haul in the history of united Germany is from the 2014 Games in Zurich, when the balance was eight (4–1–3) podium places.
How about next week?
There will be a few medals, says Bryggare and estimates that at least the men’s javelin, javelin and decathlon have medal seams.
– In women’s length Malaika Mihambo is an overwhelming favorite.