Ulli Boos, Leiter Marketing & Kommunikation bei den SWG (ganz links) und Stephanie Orlik, im SWG-Marketing für das Sponsoring zuständig, über den Abschluss des Kooperationsvertrags.
Stadtwerke Gießen and Kegelsportverein Wettenberg e.V. are cooperating for the next three years.
For the bowlers of Kegelsportverein Wettenberg e.V., 2024 has been a good year so far: after promotion to the 2nd Bundesliga, the first men's team played on an equal footing and was able to stay in the league. This sporting success of the dedicated scissor bowlers is now also being recognised elsewhere: "We are delighted to be able to support KSV Wettenberg as the main sponsor from the 2024/2025 season. Supporting regional clubs is important to us," explained Ulli Boos, Head of Marketing & Communications at Stadtwerke Gießen (SWG), at the signing of the contract. The partnership will run for the next three years. "A partnership like this gives us enormous planning security and helps us not only to stay in the league, but perhaps even to look upwards," emphasises Mike Heese, 2nd Chairman of KSV Wettenberg.
Success with young talent
KSV Wettenberg laid the foundations for its return to the top flight last season and its retention in the league this year with a long-term plan of consistent youth development. "Our young guns are now real top performers in the Bundesliga team," emphasises Steven Groß, 1st Chairman of KSV Wettenberg. But not only there. The Wettenberg bowlers have also enjoyed plenty of success in the corresponding age groups. In 2019, an U14 mixed team secured KSV's first ever German championship title. The Anders brothers are a prime example of the quality of youth development at KSV Wettenberg. As the reigning national U18 champions, Tino and his brother Jan represented Germany at the 2023 Youth and Junior World Championships in Düsseldorf. The pair won three gold medals, one silver and one bronze in the U18 and U24 age groups. "It's just great to see that there are clubs like KSV Wettenberg where young talents mature into successful athletes. We wholeheartedly support this achievement, which cannot be valued highly enough," added Ulli Boos.
Particularly exciting game variant
Not all bowling is the same. In fact, there are four variants in Germany: Classic, Bohle, Bowling and Schere - the version played in Wettenberg. The most obvious distinguishing feature is the lane, which widens from 35 centimetres at the launch to 1.25 metres, reminiscent of an open pair of scissors. In addition, there is a slight curvature that influences the trajectory of the ball. There is an uphill slope of ten centimetres from the release point towards the cone.
There are two forms of play in each game: the full game, in which the athletes repeatedly throw at all nine skittles, and the clearing game. The aim here is to knock down all the skittles with as few throws as possible.