The Diving Ducks are about to kick off the season. A young duo brings a special wealth of experience from the preparation: Julian Faulhaber and Felix Astner completed a month of training with the Bonn Capitals as part of their commitment to the army. Clemens Cichocki, who was born in Wiener Neustadt, works there as a coach. The Germans are one of the best teams in Europe and even played the final of the European premier class in 2021.
The two training guests were allowed to compete in units with the first and second teams. “The team is really top-class,” confirms Faulhaber. While in Austria the level in the lower positions of the batting line-up is decreasing, it remains consistently high in Bonn: “Here, a large part can also throw quickly and qualitatively. You have to be in your rhythm all the time, you’re forced to be even more concentrated, I definitely took that with me,” says Faulhaber, describing his impressions.
With the high level in North Rhine-Westphalia, the two ducks did well and were even allowed to go to the Netherlands for the test match against the Hoofddorp Pioneers. Cichocki was also quite satisfied with the performance of the two youngsters: “The two boys definitely made a good impression. Julian, in particular, stood out at batting in Holland.”
Faulhaber and Astner are now back in Austria and, as army athletes, are currently receiving additional training at the Vienna Baseball Academy and in Südstadt. The conditions for the start of the Bundesliga on April 15 could hardly be better.
