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.
Ticket sales for another Bayer 04 Women's home game have begun. Fans can now purchase tickets for the match against SGS Essen at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium on Saturday, 22 November. The latest information at a glance.
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It took 120 minutes, but once again Bayer 04 produced a late goal to win their DFB Pokal second-round tie away at Paderborn on Wednesday. “Same as always” was the line in Bild in homage to the 2023/24 double-winning season. With Jeanuel Belocian making his first start in over a year and Ibrahim Maza netting his first Werkself goal to secure a place in the last 16, Jonas Hofmann is eager to “take the positive feeling” into the next round.
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A DFB Pokal thriller that had it all - including a positive outcome from a Bayer 04 perspective. After a goalless and uneventful first half, the second round tie at SC Paderborn 07 really took off: Following a red card for the second division side, Grimaldo scored to give Bayer 04 a 1-0 lead but Paderborn levelled before the end of normal time. The home side then turned the game round at 2-1 in extra time, before Quansah, Maza and Garcia scored for the Werkself to make it 4-2 to seal a place in the Round of 16.
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SC Paderborn 07, the second-placed team in Bundesliga 2, face the Werkself in the second round of the DFB Pokal. Although Paderborn have won six games in a row, Bayer 04 have never lost to SCP. That will hopefully continue on Wednesday, 29 October (kick-off: 18:00 CET) with Patrick Ittrich the man with the whistle. The experienced referee will have to make do without the support of VAR at the Home Deluxe Arena. Read on for further information on tonight’s game in the matchday news.
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