Biathlete Lisa Spark has been named Junior Athlete of the Year by the German Sports Aid Foundation.
The 22-year-old junior world champion from SC Traunstein prevailed in an online vote against four other young athletes. She follows in the footsteps of former biathlon greats Magdalena Neuner (2007/2008) and Laura Dahlmeier (2013).
Also up for election were Jule Behrens (triathlon), Annett Kaufmann (table tennis), Franziska Ritter (climbing) and Leon Ulbricht (snowboard cross). Spark got most of the 15,000 votes cast. Thomas Berlemann, CEO of Sporthilfe, praised her as “an outstanding athlete who, with her determination and discipline, is already a role model for other athletes and young people in Germany”.
The other prizes at the awards ceremony in Düsseldorf went to the female U21 national hockey team, para-biathlete Linn Kazmaier and deaf pool swimmer Niklas Müller.