News Archive

Ladies first! The women’s competition…

After a calm race, the world champion in the half marathon in 1995, Hilde

Goovaerts (Barclaycard inLion Girls), led the way for the final sprint by her

team mate and fellow Belgian, Britta von Tournhout, who won ahead of the German

skaters, Tina Strüver (Verducci) and Jana Gegner (Powerslide).

´´Tina Strüver has a really good sprint, ´´

said Hilde Goovaerts after the finish, thus expressing that the 2003 European

Championship bronze medal winner for the 500m was a hard opponent for both

Belgians.

One should know that the runners from Belgium already have their 2004

national long course championships behind them and are thus at the peak of

their training. Whether or not they can keep up this form for rest of the year

remains to be seen. In any case, Britta van Tournhout is looking forward to

more hard duels with Tina Strüver this year.

The men’s race…

At the finish, the commentator had trouble finding the name that belonged to

the winning race number. After a few seconds of nervous anticipation, the name

rang out over the filled Schlossplatz square: ´´Jörg Wecke

from ST Celle´´. A murmur went around the knowledgeable spectators.

What happened? Who is Jörg Wecke???

The 35-year-old lieutenant in the German military, who transferred last year

to ST Celle, the top speed skating club in Lower Saxony, humiliated the teams

from Germany and Denmark. He took off from the main field of skaters at the 5

km mark and began working on the plan he had been given by his trainer. Olaf

Herrmann (former Ukrainian ice speed skating national trainer) told Jörg

before the race: You can only win and have nothing to lose.“ Jörg

Wecke secured a lead of about 500 metres and held it constant.

Why the main field, that had Wecke within their view, did not catch him can

only be explained by arrogance.

According to plan, Wecke did two four minute fast pieces when the course

became more curved, which allowed him to get out of the field of vision of the

main group. When they discovered that he was not collapsing as expected, he had

already crossed the finish 17 seconds ahead of the rest. Thomas Rumpf, the head

of the board of directors of ST Celle explained the winner’s current

level of excellence with a very good partnership between club sport and

industry, which was made possible by the company in Celle, Ecoroll, and by the

good winter training conditions in an industrial hall.

The sprint for second place within the main field was won by the only

15-year-old Rasmus Steffensen of Denmark (Maple inLion Team Europe), ahead of

Toni Deubner (Team Fila). The new course of the Bewag BERLIN HALF MARATHON...

Due to the new course, many skaters were able to achieve small and large

personal successes. The general opinion was that the course had become faster.

Unfortunately, however, the team skaters did not take advantage of this

privilege. The city has long been well known for its good road surfaces and

wide Berlin streets.

The new finish area considerably improved the flair of the finish for both

the athletes and the spectators. While last year the final sprint was hidden

behind a curve, the tactical manoeuvres of the teams over the last 300 metres

in a fight for the crown could be seen easily this year.

The new event location (start/finish) between the Zeughaus museum and the

Berlin Cathedral...

Berlin has always had a bonus with the skaters because of its wide

boulevards. The constantly increasing number of Berlin spectators, who support

the athletes with their non-stop cheering, continually warm the hearts of the

skaters on their way to the finish. The new event location, which is

highlighted with the historical importance of the architecture

(Schloßbrücke Palace Bridge, Zeughaus museum, Lustgarten,

Kommandantur, Kronprinzenpalais, State Opera, Berlin Cathedral, and the Neue

Wache Tomb of the Unknown Soldier) helped make the adventure weekend “a

skating race in Berlin” even more enjoyable.

Everyone who was in the Berlin city on Saturday afternoon must have had the

feeling that the entire city was into sports. I think the boutiques, clothing

and department stores rarely have been able to greet as many customers in

sneakers in their stores, as on the weekend of long course races of the skaters

and runners. Reiner Huß