There seems to have been a collective outburst of anger at the conference of state sports associations (LSB) on Friday in Munich.

In a paper that was passed unanimously, the LSB complained about "grotesque bureaucracy" and "unrealistic control fantasies", about "dysfunctional thought patterns" and the "fiction of central control".

Michael Reinsch

Correspondent for sports in Berlin.

  • Follow I follow

The sixth of seven demands formulated with exclamation marks is the restriction of state funding for unsuccessful sports.

Germany is probably the only country in the world that is trying to promote top-level sport in all types of sport and disciplines.

"If we don't want to fall behind in a steadily increasing number of sports/disciplines on a global scale," it says, "a concentration of the available funds on fewer sports/disciplines is essential." Basic funding for other sports must be discussed.

Christoph Niessen, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the LSB North Rhine-Westphalia, reported that he had never experienced such a degree of frustration, disappointment and resignation as at the meeting of the managing directors in Saarbrücken four weeks ago: "There's a lot of frustration and emotional outbursts at the conference this paper entitled "Shaping the future of competitive sport!"

The core question is how the resources would be distributed in this system.

The competitive sports reform of 2016 had too many aspects: "The players got lost in it."

The excess of structures and institutions in sport - most recently the creation of the potential analysis system Potas - is an escape from responsibility;

it is important to overcome the distrust between the federal government as the sponsor of top-class sport and the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) and not only to make sport responsible for sporting performance, but also to give it the opportunity to shape it by means of a budget and target agreement.

The LSB are thus speaking out against the independent authority announced in the coalition agreement for the allocation of state subsidies, commonly described as top-class sport GmbH.

Reducing bureaucracy is not a spectacular demand, says Niessen, but what has been built up in terms of bureaucracy and obstacles is spectacular: "Some of the legal requirements for grants are grotesque."

The state sports associations demand that the maxims of fair play, human dignity and human integrity should not lead to a relativization of the goals of competitive sports funding.

Ultimately, the logic of performance requires funding to be geared towards global standards.

"We have lost this clear orientation in many areas of the system." The common goal of humane and manipulation-free competitive sport "must not lead to what is supposedly top-class sport being promoted, but one accepting from the outset that the world standard will be missed".

It's about success, not fun

Niessen rejects the interpretation that the LSB demanded a competitive sports resolution like in the GDR in 1969, which at the time led to the exclusion of basketball and hockey, table tennis, alpine skiing and ice hockey from state funding.

"We don't want top performance by any means," he says: "We don't want to subordinate everything to success.

But we want excellence.

Athletes go to competitions for success, not for fun.”

When asked whether athletics would have to adjust to cuts after the presentation of the LSB, Niessen replied that the German national team had not achieved enough success at the World Cup, but that the successes at the European Championships in Munich did not reach world standards.

Sprinter Gina Lückenkemper became European Champion in 10.99 seconds.

At the World Championships in Eugene (Oregon) she would not have qualified for the final with this time.

The 8545 points with which Niklas Kaul became European champion in the decathlon would only have brought him fourth place at the World Championships.

Promote competitive sport in the club

In the Potas potential analysis system, athletics has become the number one summer sport, explains Niessen, because the association was the best at filling out the questionnaires.

Basketball, on the other hand, whose men's national team just finished third at the European Championships, an event in which many games were world-class, finished last at Potas.

“In light of these findings, one has to ask oneself,” says Niessen: “What is that worth?

Did we create this new structure for this and let it cost us hundreds of thousands of euros?”

Rather, the direct work with athletes should be the focus of the work.

The state sports associations are planning a uniform tariff for the employment of trainers.

In addition, it is important to promote competitive sport in the club.

Cooperation between clubs and schools is necessary;

Sport must be significantly upgraded, especially in elementary schools, both as a subject and as part of cooperation.

Like the DOSB, the state sports associations are demanding - in a separate paper - a cap on energy costs and the inclusion of sport in the federal government's third relief package.

Clubs and associations would face an existential threat due to the possible closure of sports facilities and the rising costs.

They needed significant financial relief.

Municipalities should avoid the energy-related closure of sports facilities and swimming pools.

Funding for the modernization and renovation of sports facilities should not only apply to municipal facilities, but also to facilities owned by clubs.