Love is in the air! At the Berlin 2018 European Athletics Championships, part of the inaugural multi-sport European Championships with co-hosts Glasgow from 2-12 August, two couples will get married in the Berlin Olympic Stadium.
Two athletics fans from Voerde, North Rhine Westphalia, as well as former European Champion Leena Günther and her groom Veit Rauscher are going to say “I do”.
Berlin 2018 was initially looking for one couple to get married on 8 August at Germany’s biggest sporting event this year but after receiving numerous applications from all over the world - and one couple was even willing to switch to 9 August - the organising team decided to give two couples the unique opportunity to marry in the Berlin Olympic Stadium.
Leena Günther, a former top athlete from Cologne, who won the European Championships title in the 4x100m relay in Helsinki 2012 will marry her boyfriend Veit Rauscher during this year’s championships. The second couple to tie the knot on 8 August in the chapel of the Olympic Stadium are theologian Markus Kuhlmann and teacher Mechthild Voss from Voerde near Düsseldorf.
Leena and Veit are bursting with happiness. The athlete from Cologne and the coach from Regensburg will say “I do” on 9 August in the registry office at Zehlendorf. Afterwards the couple will celebrate in the hospitality area of the Berlin Olympic Stadium together with 40 guests.
“Athletics brought us together and sports has always played a huge role in our lives. Moreover, it is just an incredibly exceptional experience and we are very much looking forward to celebrating our special day during the European Athletics Championships”, enthuses Leena.
They each have their favourite disciplines as well, and they look forward to watching them live in Berlin this August.
“Veit loves decathlon, as it combines the whole variety of athletics. My favourite disciplines are obviously the 100m and the 4x100m relay, which I used to run”, explains Leena who is going to wear a short white dress on her big day.
After eight years, Markus Kuhlmann and Mechthild Voss have decided to marry and they wanted to celebrate their union at the Berlin Olympic Stadium. “We really wanted to have this kind of wedding. We both are huge athletics fans and are still active senior athletes. The Olympic Stadium as the last remaining big German athletics stadium is of special significance to us”, said Mechthild.
The two already know which athletes they will be supporting at the European Championships. “We are both mainly interested in the throwing disciplines. Mechthild likes to watch discus and hammer throwing and I am amazed by shot put and discus. We will therefore be cheering for Robert Harting and David Storl and would obviously be forever grateful to meet these two athletes”, said Markus.
Maybe there will be a meet and greet? Two dream weddings with 55,000 witnesses: Berlin 2018 makes it possible!
Berlin 2018 is part of the European Championships - a major new multisport event taking place every four years, supported by Europe’s free-to-air broadcasters, which aggregates the existing senior continental championships of Athletics (European Athletics), Aquatics (LEN), Cycling (UEC), Gymnastics (UEG), Rowing (FISA), Triathlon (ETU), with a new Golf Team Championships (ET & LET) – all unified under a common brand.
The world-class sporting and cultural cities of Glasgow and Berlin will host the first edition of the Championships 2-12 August 2018, and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) already has agreements with almost 40 broadcasters worldwide to cover the event. There will be up to 300 hours of programming across television, radio and online, free to air in all the main markets, with an anticipated 2,700 hours of television coverage across the Championships.
The vision for the event is to create a must-watch, must-attend experience that elevates the Champions of Europe during an 11-day celebration of sport and packed 10-day broadcast schedule backed by free-to-air television through EBU.
NOTES TO EDITORS
1. The 2018 European Championships will be staged by seven European Sports Federations and the Host Cities of Berlin and Glasgow.
2. The Berlin 2018 European Athletics Championships will be held between Tuesday 07 August and Sunday 12 August. The Glasgow 2018 sports programme will start with a day of qualifications on Thursday 02 August and will run until Sunday 12 August.
3. The EBU is the broadcast partner of the Championships and, to date, has signed agreements with almost 40 broadcasters to ensure the event will be viewed by the widest possible audience, free-to-air in all major markets. Its business arm, Eurovision Media Services, will be acting as host broadcaster, through its subsidiary European Production Coordination, and will be responsible for distributing the event to rights-holding media organizations worldwide.
4. In total, the European Championships will span 10 days of television programming from Friday 03 August to Sunday 12 August 2018. The event has a potential television audience of around 1.03 billion with many more viewers across multiple digital platforms. There will be up to 300 hours of host broadcaster coverage, and an anticipated 2,700 hours of television coverage.
5. A total of 1,500 athletes will compete in Berlin, with around 3,000 athletes competing in Glasgow.
6. Berlin's Olympic Stadium will be the venue for the European Athletics Championships with the road races and race walking events held throughout the city.