As part of the European Championships Munich 2022, the finals of the "Beweg-Dich-Schlau-Championships", initiated by the Felix Neureuther Foundation, took place on Monday on the Olympic Hill. 110 elementary school students competed against each other in eight movement and thinking games and chose a winning team. Afterwards, a sports policy discussion on youth sports focused on exactly that: What should youth sports look like in the 21st century in order to give children the joy of movement again?
The invited guests included Felix Neureuther, former ski racer and patron and founder of the Felix Neureuther Foundation, Bavarian Interior and Sports Minister Joachim Herrmann (CSU) and Bavarian Education Minister Prof. Dr. Michael Piazolo (Freie Wähler). Also on the podium were Jörg Ammon, President of the Bavarian Sports Association (BLSV), and Michael Weiß, Chairman of the Bavarian Sports Youth (BSJ). Marion Schöne, Managing Director of Olympiapark GmbH, was present from the organizer's side.
In retrospect, however, one piece of news in particular made the headlines: After the round of talks, Interior Minister Herrmann spoke out in favor of a German Olympic bid to the Rheinische Post newspaper. Germany must "get its act together for an application, regardless of the location". Earlier, Olympia had already been raised as a topic during the round of talks. BLSV President Ammon praised the organizers and particularly emphasized the enthusiasm that the European Championships generate among spectators. It is precisely this fascination of experiencing "sport on site" at first hand that is a decisive factor in getting children and young people excited about sport again and encouraging them to move independently. This is also why he spoke out very clearly in favor of a German bid for the 2036 Olympic Games, which he wants to tackle together with Herrmann.
Sustainability will play a key role in the European Championships Munich 2022. According to the organizers, the event will offer long-term added value in the three areas of social, environmental and economic sustainability - from the reuse of structures and buildings from the 1972 Olympic Games to social projects for young and old and educational initiatives. According to Herrmann, the European Championships are proof that, unlike the Winter Olympics in Beijing, such a major event can be organized in a sustainable and respectful manner.
For Felix Neureuther, it was less about competitive sports or a bid for the Olympics. He had one concern above all: That children move more again.
The lack of exercise, especially after the Corona pandemic, will be one of the most important issues in future society. That's why events like the European Championships are particularly important: "Children should get in touch with sport, it should awaken emotions in them," Neureuther said. Children who sit in all-day schools until the afternoon and then spend all their free time on their smartphones are almost the norm these days. That's why more needs to be offered to children at school, he says: "For me, there's simply still too little happening in the school system when it comes to the subject of exercise. It's still too far away from sports." Children should have the opportunity to move, to discover the joy of movement. Lessons should be structured in a playful way and learning should be linked to movement, he said. Neureuther cited the Scandinavian education system as a model, because there movement is integrated much more strongly in schools.
Michael Weiß also argued that society needs to move more again: "It's not always just about competitive sports, we first need the foundations to make competitive sports possible. The breadth of society has to move, and that starts with children and young people.'' This is made possible above all by the cooperation between schools and sports clubs. Because here, in addition to movement, children are also taught values such as togetherness, tolerance and respect.
Marion Schöne also agreed with this view. It is important to her that everyone can participate in the European Championships. That's why the organizing team of "The Roofs" festival has come up with something special to get the children excited about sports again in the long term: For each of the nine participating sports, there is a location in the Olympic Park where children can try out the sports themselves and collect an EC sports badge - so that today's children can become tomorrow's sports enthusiasts.
Text & photos: Laura Kimpfbeck & Julian Brandt