Tournament Report: The 18th International German Backgammon Championship
The 18th International German Backgammon Championship took place over the May Day holiday at the Lufthansa Seeheim Conference Hotel. A total of 215 players from Germany and abroad competed in three different categories, providing several days of top-class sport, exciting matches, and an excellent tournament atmosphere.
After several hotel changes over the past three years, the event seems to have finally found its ideal venue. The Lufthansa Seeheim Conference Hotel proved to be the perfect location for an international tournament of this scale. The spacious facilities, a great terrace, and the breakfast and dinner buffets included in the room rate provided the perfect setting and optimal conditions for both players and organizers. The hotel's experience in hosting large events was particularly evident throughout the tournament.
The German Championship also offered plenty of sporting action. In all three categories, every point was hard-fought until the very last round. Numerous close matches and surprising twists kept the excitement high until the very end. Alongside the competition, the focus was also on fostering personal connections within the backgammon community. Many participants used the long weekend to reconnect with old friends and forge new ones.
As organizers, we are extremely pleased with how the event went. The combination of a strong field of participants, a pleasant atmosphere, and a professional venue made the 18th International German Backgammon Championship a resounding success and a true highlight on the tournament calendar.
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110 Participants in the Championship Flight
This year’s tournament once again featured a wide variety of matches and plenty of thrills among the champions. In a thrilling final, Toni Grab from Kiel prevailed and claimed the title of “International German Champion.” Timo Väätäinen, the reigning world champion from Finland, also put in a strong performance, securing second place. The semifinalists were Laila Leonhardt from Denmark and Alexis Vincent from France—two truly impressive players who enriched the tournament.
Wolfgang Schader from Darmstadt won the Last Chance ahead of Ulrich Woelki from Krefeld.
73 participants in the Intermediate Flight
In the Intermediate Flight class, the victory went to Serkan Sertkaya from Schöllgrippen. Michael Weidner from Lampertheim took second place, followed by Nariman Rzaiev from Ukraine and Thimothy Jaxon from Berlin in third place. All in all, it was a fantastic event with great matches and international participants.
In the Last Chance round, Frank Burkhard from Reinfeld prevailed over Silvia Weilenmann from Switzerland.
32 Participants in the Beginner Flight
We were delighted to see so many new names in the Beginner Flight. This competition also provided plenty of excitement and interesting matches. Especially during the group stage, which was played using the Swiss system, the tension was palpable right up until the 5th round.
Miriam Michel, Nong Hausschild, Michele Foglia, and Viktor Tiesalov qualified for the semifinals. Nong prevailed against Viktor from Neu-Isenburg in the first semifinal, and Michele from Switzerland defeated Miriam from Lampertheim. The final was fiercely contested; the title ultimately went to Zuchwil, Switzerland. Congratulations to Michele Foglia.
Fuad Karimi won the Last Chance match against Ender Kayacan,
Let’s move on to the side events
The final match of the tournament was the Consulting Doubles final. In the competition, which featured 44 teams,
Rainer Jöller & Frank Simon defeated Maros Derjan & Albert Dervishi.
The semifinalists were Jakob Garal & Oleksandr Krasov and Christoph & Felix Wagener.
The Limited Doubles, featuring 24 teams, was won by Viktoria & Fred Brendler,
ahead of Kirstine Jensen & Max Petersen.
The big jackpots kicked off on Saturday afternoon, and anyone who had been eliminated from the tournament by that point was eligible to enter.
Fifty-three players registered for the SuperJackpot, and Mislav Kovacic took home the winner’s trophy to Croatia.
Kevin Grothe from Recklinghausen had to settle for the trophy for second place. Martin Hoffmann from Voerde
and Abdul-Halim Barakat from Kuwait tied for third place.
In our SpeedGammon tournament, which drew 128 participants, Georg Lachnit-Winter from Hanover claimed the title. Frank Simon from Darmstadt finished as runner-up among the quick thinkers. Third place was shared by Jürgen Schettler from Bonn and Torsten Lux from the Taunus region.
Last but not least, we come to the Ladies’ Cup. A whopping 31 ladies took to the starting line, all hoping to take home the trophy. Corinna Blaschke from Bielefeld succeeded, winning the final against Alexia Ragotzky from Mörfelden-Walldorf.
Once again, congratulations to all the winners on their outstanding performances,
and of course, we wish them every success in their future backgammon careers.