The odyssey into the fun society

With careful steps, which at some point even become a running start, the student, let's call him Heinrich today, aims for the long jump pit. And of course he doesn't care about his running technique. It's already half a marathon to get to the board that's embedded in the ground in front of the sand pit. From there he has to jump off and also overcome the distance board to the soft sand. After a successful attempt, two classmates come with a measuring tape and determine: Heinrich is completely fine. Jump valid and far enough to get a few points for the certificate at the Federal Youth Games. A simple version is available from 40 points onwards, and a more beautiful version, which is even called a certificate of honor, is available for over 55 points. You are then already recognized in the class as a sporting ace, which is why the efforts in the 50m run and throwing rounders become sweaty.

The motivation is obvious, because the friends in the class are good and Heinrich, who is also the class representative, just wants to assert himself. It's an internal competition. It's also a bit about staking claims within the class group. These are the first power games that life later demands again and again in a different, much more intense form. This happens at school without any calculation, rather instinctively. Growing up, you want to compete. Fun instead of performance Now this should all be over. In elementary school through fourth grade, the long jump pit should just be a playground. Distances are no longer measured, times are no longer recorded and how far the ball flies is completely uninteresting. The main thing is that it's fun. Fun. Yes, that should be the focus now. No longer a competition, just a competition. Maybe in building sandcastles. The idea of performance should be suppressed as an evil companion to sporting activities. Tape measures and stopwatches on the sports field are a thing of the past until a certain age. In Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, where shoes of various brands have been produced for many years, a conference of sports ministers is currently taking place where an attempt will be made to banish the idea of performance from school sports. We want to become – hurray – a fun society.

First of all, I'm totally surprised that there are actually so many sports ministers in Germany, because a federal minister for physical exercise cannot be found because sport is subordinate to the Ministry of the Interior. Of course, you know the person responsible for this department because they are there when important sporting events are coming up and, above all, when sporting successes are being celebrated.

When the basketball world champions arrived, Nancy Faeser - she is currently Interior Minister - took the opportunity to personally congratulate the German aces, also pointing out the victory in the semi-final against the USA on Saturday, which of course was on Friday. Gifted. Basketball is new territory for her. It was really fun with the boys after the win against Serbia. In any case, much more than a year ago in Qatar. Faeser was there too.

Nancy Faeser gave Dennis Schröder and Co. a world-class reception. © ANSA / RONALD WITTEK

Of course, because football is always accompanied by many cameras. Unfortunately, we didn't see it for very long from a German perspective and certainly much to the chagrin of the minister, who of course wanted to shine in the VIP grandstand in the final. But that would have required a good performance. By the way, people now want to break new ground in football and finally have fun, which has only been the case to a limited extent recently. There should therefore be no more goals. Finally. We just want to dribble and do magic. And woe betide you, it gets to the bone. “Mommy, he pushed me.”

Major events should help German sport is currently embarking on a total aberration. The idea of performance is suppressed. We only swim so as not to sink. We just play to be there. We mainly run behind and will be surprised later when we have been completely left behind. There are already enough tendencies for the crash. There are some former competitive athletes in the Bundestag, such as Jens Lehmann (cycling) and Franck Ullrich (biathlon). They were Olympic champions and world champions. I miss clear statements from both of them. But that has always been a problem. In Germany, sport is an appendage of politics without any real backing. Basically, this is where the fun actually ends. The only reliable response is always to hear a call for help after the World Championships and Olympic Games, which are to be organized in Germany. According to the tenor, this would provide the necessary impetus for top-class sport. We will no longer have competitive athletes. But a lot of fun with the performances of the competition.

About the author: Sigi Heinrich The award-winning sports journalist, author and Eurosport commentator devotes his column “Sigi's Peaks” to the entire diversity of sport. Sometimes with a smile and a wink, sometimes thoughtful or deliberately provocative. There should be something for everyone.

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The odyssey into the fun society

The Federal Youth Games in Germany are to be changed. Athletics competitions should no longer be held until a certain age is reached. Our columnist Sigi Heinrich once discovered firsthand that performance can also be fun.

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