Surprisingly, Würzburg will remain a federal base for open water swimming beyond 2024. This is confirmed by the Federal Ministry of the Interior, which is responsible for promoting sports, to ARD. SV Würzburg 05 will continue to receive around 90,000 euros annually from tax revenue. The German Swimming Association (DSV) justifies the decision for Würzburg with “funding parameters” and a “lack of capacity” in Magdeburg. According to SZ information, the city in Saxony-Anhalt, where national coach Bernd Berkhahn trains, among others, Olympic champions Lukas Märtens and Florian Wellbrock, was considered the most promising candidate for the successor alongside Munich, according to SZ information. The Würzburg location fell into disrepute when long-time base coach Stefan Lurz was sentenced to a suspended sentence for sexual abuse.
DSV announced Würzburg’s exit in the summer
In the summer of 2024, the DSV announced that it would close the federal base in Würzburg. Wolfgang Rupieper, the then chairman of the German Swimming Association (DSV), and Harald Walter, the President of the Bavarian Swimming Association (BSV), had this South German newspaper confirmed. “It was clear to us that after the incidents surrounding Stefan Lurz, the base would no longer be able to be held,” Walter told the SZ at the time. Rupieper primarily cites “sports-related reasons” for the end of the traditional and successful center.
So now the role backwards, which national coach Berkhahn sharply criticized on ARD: “The zero-tolerance policy of the presidium does not fit with this decision, also because of Würzburg’s history.” The new DSV president David Profit therefore announced Würzburg’s future remains in discussion with the German Olympic Sports Confederation and the Federal Ministry of the Interior. “We said that we would now take a break for two years until the next round of awards,” he explained.
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