Member Associations | 4 Mar 2012

National Championships: STEGER and WU won in Berlin

04/03/2012 – In German Championships men’s singles history repeated itself. STEGER beat OVTCHAROV in the final again, after OVTCHAROV had a much better start and looked like the winner until the end of the 3rd game.
It was Steger’s second “double” in a row – he won singles and doubles competition in Bamberg last year for the first time. Bamberg is in Bavaria, the county where STEGER was born and raised.

STEGER said: “Becoming national Champion for the first time and especially close to your home town is hard to beat. But it feels also nice to win this title in Germany’s capital. If you have already won this title once the pressure is much less. It was different for Dimitrij, I’m sure. He was the better player esp. at the beginning. He was about to go 3-0 games in the lead. If he had succeeded he would have won the tournament. I don’t know how I came back after 0-2 and 7-10. All I could do was fighting and I did. This title gives me more self-confidence but I have to raise my playing level until Dortmund, that’s for sure. There are still 3 weeks to go, I’m very optimistic.”

WU Jiaduo won her first national singles title in her 4th attempt at German nationals. Like STEGER she won the doubles competition partnering Kristin SILBEREISEN from her Bundesleague club Kroppach as well. “I’m as happy about this national title as I was about my titles at the European Championships in 2009 and at the Europe Top 12 in February. It’s difficult to become the national Champion. All my team-mates in the national team practice together every day, we know every weakness and strong points. It’s almost easier for me to beat players from abroad,” she said with a smile.

19-year-old Sabine WINTER reached her first national singles final: “I was so close to win this match. Right after this final I am very disappointed of course. But I am sure that from a distance I will be happy about my silver medal. I did not expect this at all before the tournament. My return was the decisive point today. I didn’t play it ideally. Like that ‘Dudu’ could answer aggressively and force me into the passive role. Once she succeeds to attack I’m massively under pressure.”

2000 fans came today at the venue “Velodrom”, where the German Open 2008 took place. Timo BOLL was here, too, but did not play. He is suffering from a fibre irritation in his left shoulder probably from too much practicing. “My participation in the World Championships in Dortmund in 3 weeks is not endangered. I just didn’t want to take any risk during this important year with World Championships at home and the Olympics.”