I mean, adidas and Puma are based there. Two of the major sporting shoe brands. But no meet. Strange.
There is still the ISTAF in Berlin. Used to be Diamond League but isn't anymore. Wouldn't say that track meets in Germany are dead, still plenty of smaller ones in addition to ISTAF. Maybe simply not the right incentives for ISTAF to be a member of DL anymore.
The German sports machine is dead & stinking. They now suck at just about everything.
Except men's football and biathlon, every sport is doing badly.
There aren't many opportunities for kids to do sports so they never get involved unless their parents are backing them. And local club level sports can vary massively... So you have very little talent to search from :/
The athlete factories from the GDR are also mostly gone, now just a few sports school left for kids who specialise early or are already making national teams.
The German sports machine is dead & stinking. They now suck at just about everything.
Except men's football and biathlon, every sport is doing badly.
There aren't many opportunities for kids to do sports so they never get involved unless their parents are backing them. And local club level sports can vary massively... So you have very little talent to search from :/
The athlete factories from the GDR are also mostly gone, now just a few sports school left for kids who specialise early or are already making national teams.
Men's football is doing terrible. Their last two World Cup performances have been abysmal. How they went from winning the World Cup in 2014 to getting eliminated in the first round in 2018 and 2022 is a difficult to understand.
The comical way that Germany lost to Korea with the goalkeeper standing in the middle of the field leaving the Korean to score in an empty net is still hillarious 6 years later.
The main reason there is no Diamond League in Germany is that it simply costs too much to host and to televise. In Germany there is no sponsoring from the state or the tourism organisations, as it is the case in some other countries, so all the funds have to come from private sponsoring.
Additionally IAAF controls everything in a Diamond League meet. ISTAF Berlin organiser has stated his appreciation of the freedom to host his meet the way he sees it fit.
Another reason is the lack of german superstars in Athletics. Vicious cycle: no stars -> no interest by TV companies -> no sponsors -> no money -> no meetings -> no stars.
ISTAF organizers already had to pay off a €400.000 debth from their own pockets, therefore they are very much set on keeping it small and simple in the future.
Maybe you should read up on German history. The concept of Diamond is a highly inflammatory topic even among young Germans at all sides of the political spectrum.
I don't want to reach too much, but I know a lot of Germans and work with Germans so here is my take:
After the 1990s and the EPO scandals of cycling and running, the Germans were the leaders in testing, busting, and reporting on drug use. They broke most of the biggest scandals through real journalistic work from the ARD (German news)
The knock-on effect is that Germans are cynical and disinterested. There is a "well, it is all a fraud" attitude about cycling, swimming, and track. Not to mention, in modern Germany, athletes cannot effectively dope (anymore) and as such they have almost no Sportler at the peak international level anymore. This fact has caused interest to drop dramatically.
Prior to the 1990s, the Germans were one of the world's track & field powerhouses. They averaged 10 medals per WC in the 1990s. In Budapest, they got zero. The days at the top are over. Uta Pippig, Dieter Baumann, Heike Dreschler, Heike Henkel, Lars Riedel, Stephane Franke, are all long gone.
The journalist Hajo Seppelt is a hero of clean sport but having no dopers in your country also impacts your country's odds of doing well on the biggest stages: OG, WC, etc.
But with Alica Schmidt, Malaika Mihambo, Gina Lückenkemper, Leo Neugebauer, Konstanze Klosterhalfen you could really create a buzz when all would attend plus international stars. Budapest TV ratings were really good despite getting wzero medals..
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You have to be invited into the Diamond League Fraternity!
The DIamond League is today's name for the Lausanne based athletics families that started the Olympics back in the 1800s. It's the 4th Generation athletics dynasty. It's a fraternity of many European companies, charity meetings, clubs, etc. You can join the fraternity. Youn have to be invited to becaome a member. You know whio the members are. They show up a Diamond League meets as timing crew members, writers, officials, photographers, doctors, announcers, etc. It's always the same people. The Diamond League Fraternity!
The main reason there is no Diamond League in Germany is that it simply costs too much to host and to televise. In Germany there is no sponsoring from the state or the tourism organisations, as it is the case in some other countries, so all the funds have to come from private sponsoring.
Additionally IAAF controls everything in a Diamond League meet. ISTAF Berlin organiser has stated his appreciation of the freedom to host his meet the way he sees it fit.
Another reason is the lack of german superstars in Athletics. Vicious cycle: no stars -> no interest by TV companies -> no sponsors -> no money -> no meetings -> no stars.
Thanks, good reply. I think it's more down to high cost and lack of private sponsorship than anything else. Looking at the Diamond League meets, most of the countries hosting don't have athletics superstars but they likely do have big private sponsors. China has no superstars but they host two DL meets. Switzerland likewise. Of course, the entire Diamond League is sponsored by the Wanda Group, a huge Chinese conglomerate. It's all about money.
I guess that’s why the 2009 World Championships and the 2018 and 2022 European Championships were so poorly attended.
Attended by other Europeans... Those meets weren't "big in Germany." I have tons of family over there and nobody cares or talks about track.
Koko Klosterhalfen was the last elite, elite runner they had and the main thing people were asking is why she was not being pulled by her coaches for anorexia. That is all the casual sports fans knew about her.
They need a Lars Riedel type athlete to start interest in the sport again. Or a Heike Dreschler...
Monaco's main goal for the DL is to keep the European athletics families in control for succeeding generations. To do keep in power the DL allows franchises in Qatar, Morocco, China, and USA. Although the USA franchise may be transfered to Mexico in 2026.
I don't want to reach too much, but I know a lot of Germans and work with Germans so here is my take:
After the 1990s and the EPO scandals of cycling and running, the Germans were the leaders in testing, busting, and reporting on drug use. They broke most of the biggest scandals through real journalistic work from the ARD (German news)
The knock-on effect is that Germans are cynical and disinterested. There is a "well, it is all a fraud" attitude about cycling, swimming, and track. Not to mention, in modern Germany, athletes cannot effectively dope (anymore) and as such they have almost no Sportler at the peak international level anymore. This fact has caused interest to drop dramatically.
Prior to the 1990s, the Germans were one of the world's track & field powerhouses. They averaged 10 medals per WC in the 1990s. In Budapest, they got zero. The days at the top are over. Uta Pippig, Dieter Baumann, Heike Dreschler, Heike Henkel, Lars Riedel, Stephane Franke, are all long gone.
The journalist Hajo Seppelt is a hero of clean sport but having no dopers in your country also impacts your country's odds of doing well on the biggest stages: OG, WC, etc.
The truth is that all the athletic males in Germany were killed in the Second World War (and of course, a hell of a lot in the First). They got by in the post-war period through having the best doping systems.
As far as Berlin is concerned, have you been there lately? You will be hard-pressed to see a blonde person for sure. Turks and Syrians don't have much interest in watching athletics, especially when half of it is uncovered females competing.
ISATF won't rent Petr and his gang the whole stadium and let them do what they want. They have to do it with German TV crews, timing crews, officials, etc. or no meeting. They have to pay for their own hotel, food, etc. or no meeting.
But with Alica Schmidt, Malaika Mihambo, Gina Lückenkemper, Leo Neugebauer, Konstanze Klosterhalfen you could really create a buzz when all would attend plus international stars. Budapest TV ratings were really good despite getting wzero medals..
Track & Field is not popular even in the US. Networks have been known to switch from track meets to sports such as volleyball, software or bowling.
For those in the US who are Track & Field fans, one of the things we enjoy is speculating on all the young up-and-coming talent. The US is a powerhouse of athletic talent with amazing young athletes popping up all the time from all over the country. At track meets I think I hear at least 50% of conversations devoted to talking about some new teenage sensation. I supposed that can also be the case in a country like Germany except there isn't that same level of elite talent in smaller nations.
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