The North Rhine Westphalia (NRW) Sports Association is holding a vote for sports personality of the year – and, of course, Bayer 04 players and athletes are in the running. There are five nominees in each of the six categories (Sportsman and woman of the Year, Team of the Year, Newcomer and Disabled Athlete of the Year plus the winners of the Football Felix). Five sportsmen and women from Leverkusen have been nominated including Julian Brandt as potential NRW Player of the Year. The Werkself international star does face stiff competition: The Bayer 04 winger is nominated along with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Borussia Dortmund), Leon Goretzka (Schalke 04), Lars Stindl (Borussia Mönchengladbach) and Timo Horn (FC Köln).
Successful athletes and disabled athletes from TSV Bayer 04 have also been nominated. The up-and-coming middle-distance runner Konstanze Klosterhalfen, who won a silver medal in the 1,500 metres event at the European Indoor Championships last year, has been nominated as the NRW Sportswoman of the Year. Klosterhalfen won the Felix Award last year In the Newcomer of the Year category. Vanessa Low of TSV Bayer 04 was awarded the Felix in disabled sport last year.
Other nominees amongst the five best include the pole vaulter Bo Kanda Lita Baehre, who won the German Championships this year as well as a silver medal at the U20 European Championships, is in the Newcomer category as are the two disabled athletes Markus Rehm, who won gold medals at the World Cup in London in the long jump and with the Germany sprint relay team, and Johannes Floors, who picked up four medals at the World Cup in London: three golds over 200 m, 400 m and in the 4 x 100 m relay plus a silver over 100 m.
Voting is open online until 4 December: Just click on www.nrw-sportlerdesjahres.de and vote for Julian Brandt, Konstanze Klosterhalfen and Co. The lucky winners will be presented with the Felix Awards at a gala presentation on 15 December at the Mitsubishi Electric Hall in Düsseldorf.
Season tickets for the Werkself home matches in the new Google Pixel Women’s Bundesliga season are now on general sale. The season ticket is valid for all 13 matches at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium. The first home match will be played between 28 and 31 August against the runners-up, VfL Wolfsburg, followed by the clash with the German champions, Bayern Munich, between 11 and 14 September.
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A new team, a new environment, a new challenge—and yet one thing remains the same for Afonso Moreira: his attitude. Total dedication, discipline, and the drive to improve every day have defined the Portuguese player since his early days at Sporting CP. “Even back then, I realized I had to work hard to achieve my goals,” said the 21-year-old. His parents also instilled those values in him from a young age. Values that have driven him ever since, accompanied him to France when he signed for Lyon, and now also form the foundation for his new chapter at Bayer 04. At a media session, the lightning-fast winger spoke about his values, as well as his new teammates, the new coach, and his targets at the club.
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Former Bundesliga and Germany keeper Manfred Manglitz, who was promoted to the Oberliga West with Bayer 04 in 1962, passed away on Monday at the age of 86.
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Justine Brandau and Lobke Loonen joined the Bayer 04 Women’s squad in quick succession this summer. The two Dutch players have been friends since their youth days, and are now playing for the same club for the first time. In an interview at the training camp in Rieden, Brandau and Loonen talk, amongst other things, about their experiences as opponents in the Vrouwen Eredivisie, the dynamic within their new team and their first few weeks in Leverkusen.
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