Five years ago, TC Laubach had a problem: a loss of members. Then the sports club from central Hesse opened up to people with disabilities – and is now one of the few Hessian clubs that offer wheelchair and para-tennis.
Dirk Köhler is a sports enthusiast. Basketball used to be his favorite sport, today it’s tennis: he goes to the tennis courts at the “Froschloch” in Laubach (Giessen) every week, chasing balls over the net. What is special: the 54-year-old is missing a leg – he is in a wheelchair when playing tennis. “When I found out about the opportunity to play tennis here, I came straight away,” Köhler recalls. He has been a member of TC Laubach for a year. Wheelchair tennis has even been played here since 2018. The rules are almost the same as normal tennis, except that the ball can bounce twice per court.
TC Laubach offers inclusive tennis
The recruiter from Pohlheim played wheelchair basketball professionally for RSV Lahn-Dill for a total of 26 years and has also competed in the Paralympics four times. He can therefore handle the sporty, steel-reinforced wheelchair very well – even if he also has to hold a club properly. “Even with Corona, it was ideal to start tennis. It’s outdoors and you don’t need ten people in the hall – like with basketball,” says Köhler.
But the 54-year-old sees a problem: it is often the case that wheelchair users are not allowed on tennis courts – because it is said that they destroy the ashes. “Of course, I leave traces. But footprints do that too – and you can just as easily smooth them out and wipe them away when you water them. The places remain whole,” counters Köhler. Nevertheless: Until recently, TC Laubach was the only club in the whole of Central Hesse that offered inclusive tennis.
Too few clubs still offer para tennis
But since April there has been a first imitator: TC Wetzlar. And that closes the circle a bit – because the first attempt to establish this sport in central Hesse was in the 1990s, also in Wetzlar. Back then, RSV Lahn-Dill only had wheelchair tennis in their repertoire for a few years. That was then discontinued in the early 2000s due to a lack of players, says Jörg Fink. He also switched from basketball to tennis. “Tennis is less performance-oriented and a sport that you can still do at a more mature age. So it’s nice that this disabled sport is back in Central Hesse.”
“The topic of para-tennis is growing, but there are only six or seven clubs in Hesse that explicitly offer training for people with disabilities,” explains Nico Porges from the Hessian Tennis Association (HTV). Wheelchair tennis is also offered in Wiesbaden, Kelkheim, Vellmar and Seeheim. Porges’ daughter, who is paralyzed from the waist down, also plays at the TC Seeheim in the Odenwald – that’s why the HTV managing director has decided to organize the very first Hessian wheelchair tennis championships. There has never been a tournament like this before this year.
TC Laubach membership numbers are increasing
At Pentecost the time had come: 24 players took part in the Hessen Championship in Seeheim, including four children – and Dirk Köhler from TC Laubach. The man from Central Hesse won the doubles title there with his drawn partner Linda Wagemann from Erlangen. Köhler would like to defend his title – and can therefore be pleased that Porges plans to repeat the tournament next year, also at Pentecost. Also in Seeheim: “We have the best seats here, are barrier-free and have many volunteers in the club who want to lend a hand – so the venue will not be changed.”
“It was a great event. At some point you have to start with it, because otherwise nobody starts with it,” says Köhler. This obviously applies not only to competitions, but also to the establishment of disabled sports in a club. “Five years ago, our tennis club was pretty down in terms of membership numbers. We didn’t think twice about it and just opened ourselves up to members with disabilities,” Dirk Oßwald looks back. In addition to his voluntary work at TC Laubach, he is the head of the Lebenshilfe in Gießen and is therefore professionally involved with people with disabilities.
Members see great enrichment through inclusion
The tennis courts at Laubach’s “Froschloch” are not yet completely barrier-free, there is no paved path to the courts and no ramp with which you can easily cross the step to the Rotash. “That’s why there was headwind in the club beforehand, but we just started and cleared up the doubts. And of course we’re in the process of making the facility barrier-free step by step,” says Oßwald. HTV Managing Director Porges also wants the close connection between Lebenshilfe and sports club for other locations in para-tennis.
TC Laubach wants to set a good example. From the former professional athlete Köhler, to mentally handicapped tennis players, to a seven-year-old girl in a wheelchair who enthusiastically swings the racket, pretty much everything is there. Much to the delight of Karl-Heinz Kotzian. He has been in the club for over 30 years and sees the inclusion as a great enrichment: “They will never become the greatest tennis players, but that’s not the point. Because when you see how much fun they come here with: they integrate – and that’s crucial!”
A suitable wheelchair costs around 2,500 euros
Incidentally, a wheelchair suitable for sport is welded in such a way that the user does not fall off while playing tennis. Cost point: around 2,500 euros. The professional execution by Dirk Köhler even costs almost twice as much. “However, many health insurance companies support the purchase of the equipment. Sport is also therapy,” explains Köhler. The barrier is therefore less in the purchase of the wheelchair than in the range of clubs.
HTV Managing Director Porges also knows: “You won’t see any unmotivated para athletes. Most of them are just grateful that they can do sports and take part in a club culture.” This participation will continue to be encouraged at TC Laubach: A talent day in disabled sports is planned for September 11th. From 9:30 am to 3:30 pm everyone can try basketball, rugby and of course tennis in a wheelchair at the “frog hole”.
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