SWG remain partners of the Linden Gymnastics Team
Gießen Municipal Utilities will continue to support the artistic gymnasts of Turnteam Linden for a further three years.
Whether on the vault, the floor, the rings, the parallel bars, the high bar or the pommel horse – the artistic gymnasts of the Linden Gymnastics Team have mastered these apparatus, regularly displaying first-class gymnastics and thrilling spectators in the process. For many years, the team has stood for a successful merger: that of the male competitive gymnasts from TV 1892 Großen-Linden and TV 07 Watzenborn-Steinberg. Stadtwerke Gießen (SWG) has been supporting the Linden Gymnastics Team since 2011 and is now extending the partnership for a further three years.
Although the gymnastics movement originated in Germany, artistic gymnastics has since become something of a niche sport in this country. Whilst many people watch this spectacular sport on television during major events such as the Olympic Games, However, live competitions tend to take place in only a few strongholds – such as Linden. This lack of exposure to a wider audience makes it difficult for clubs to raise the necessary financial and human resources to build a stable squad of young talent.
The Linden gymnastics team has managed to strike this balance. Until 2024, they were represented in the 3rd Bundesliga – and in recent years even in the 2nd Bundesliga – with guest athletes from Germany and abroad. However, this workload proved too much for the small club, which relies exclusively on volunteers. So the decision was made to refocus on their own young talent, and they are once again enjoying great success. Not least thanks to the coaching team led by Christian Hambüchen – who remains on board – they have secured promotion to the Regionalliga. “We are grateful that SWG has supported us as a sponsor all these years,” says Martin Weber, Chair of the Förderverein Turnteam Linden e. V., summing it up. His colleague Tom Pfeiffer, the association’s vice-chairman, adds: “We couldn’t do it without sponsors like this.”
Successful youth development
Of course, Turnteam Linden does not operate entirely independently of its two parent clubs. Gymnastics continues to be a high priority within these clubs – particularly in the children’s and youth sections. This is why young talent regularly emerges from these ranks. Alongside sporting success, this youth development work makes the club an attractive prospect for SWG. And it was a key factor in SWG’s decision to continue the partnership as before. “Gymnastics is the ideal introduction for children to many different sports and therefore a perfect complement to our aim of promoting physical activity for children and young people in the region,” summarises Ulli Boos, SWG company spokesperson.
Experience top-class sport live
This season, the athletes from the Linden Gymnastics Team will be competing three times at their home venue, the Linden Town Hall, not far from the town hall. Anyone wishing to watch one of these exciting competitions is very welcome to attend. The exact dates and further information can be found at www.turnteam-linden.de