The Hunt for the Snitch
On 23 and 24. July, the world's best Quidditch players will play at the Rebstock grounds in Frankfurt
Actually, Quidditch is played by the novel character Harry Potter and his classmates at the wizarding school Hogwarts. But now the team sport exists in reality, with training taking place in Frankfurt since 2014. This year, the world championship will even take place in the Main metropolis. From 23 to 24 July, a good 20 teams from all over the world will compete against each other. "We are proud to be able to combine even unusual sports with the great diversity of our city. With us, everyone really does find something to suit their taste," emphasises Lord Mayor Feldmann.
Frankfurt am Main (pia) Nina Heise has a lot on her plate at the moment. The 23-year-old recently finished her studies, works in a PR agency in Frankfurt and is also a Quidditch coach, Quidditch national player and president of the German Quidditch Federation on the side. What sounds like Harry Potter - the famous sorcerer's apprentice from the books and films of the same name - and a lot of fantasy, is passion for Heise. During her semester abroad in Southhampton, England, she learned about the sport at the university there. "Alone in a foreign country, I just tried it out," she says.
How do you play a game that involves scoring goals on flying brooms in the wizarding world while being careful not to get hit by so-called bludgers? "Quidditch is a mixture of handball, dodgeball and rugby," explains Nina Heise. Two teams compete against each other. One team consists of three chasers who try to throw the quaffle, a kind of ball, through the opponent's goal rings. In addition, two drivers, who try to block and throw off the opposing hunters, a keeper, who guards the goal and - from the 18th minute, when the snitch is added, a seeker. In the real world, the golden snitch - a flying, very small ball in Harry Potter - is a person carrying a tennis ball in a sock on his back. If the snitch is caught, the game is over.
From student sports team to national team
Heise had never played ball sports until her semester abroad. Back in Frankfurt, it was clear to the long-time dressage rider that she wanted to stay true to the sport. At Goethe University, however, it took her a while to get enough playmates together. "Many probably didn't take my notice ‚Quidditch players wanted' quite seriously after all," she says with a grin. In June 2014, however, the team - the "Mainticores" - was able to form around Heise. Since then, a group of a good 15 people has been training twice a week under Heise's guidance in Günthersburgpark.
Today, Heise is on the national team. That means extra training sessions for the young woman, now so close to the World Championships, which will be held July 23-24 in Frankfurt. More than 20 teams will compete in July in this sport, which is still unknown in Germany. Among them are teams from Mexico, Australia, USA and many European countries. It's great that we were able to bring the World Cup to Germany and then also to Frankfurt," Heise is pleased to say. Two days will be played on the lawn of the Rebstock grounds. "Getting into the quarter-finals would be a complete success," says the athlete about the chances of the German team. The USA are considered clear favourites. "They have the longest experience and Quidditch is already better established there." Markus Frank, head of the sports department, is also looking forward to the upcoming event: "I think it's great that the Quidditch World Championships will be held in Frankfurt, our cosmopolitan sports city, and I'm sure that the sports enthusiasts of Frankfurt will want to get to know the new sport and will cheer on the teams from all parts of the world," he says.
Women and men on one team
The teams have to be mixed in gender. "That scares some people off at first," Heise says. That's because Quidditch can get pretty rough. "There's a lot of physical contact, but that's where you just have to assert yourself, especially as a woman." Practice is also always outside, even in the winter and snow. "That's okay, you just have to dress warmer," she says pragmatically. The rulebook of the International Quidditch Association, which is also used during the World Cup, now has several hundred pages. "Quidditch is becoming more and more sporty. Old Harry Potter rules, such as wearing a cape, have long since been dropped," says the Quidditch player, who holds the position of the driver. The brooms between her legs, standard plastic tubes from the hardware stores, however, have remained. "It's just an added handicap that makes the game a little more difficult," Heise explains. Because during the game, the pipes have to stay between your legs the whole time.
Photo: Salome Roessler
Mostly students play Quidditch
It's practice time on this hot evening at Guentherburg Park. Heise knows how to spur her team on despite the sweltering heat. She has worked out strategies and training modules, analyzing other people's games to adopt good plays. "I also look at football and handball with completely different eyes now," she says. There's a lot to pick up there, she adds. "Let's go - cover, I don't want to see people standing around open," she yells across the court. Six players showed up for practice today. It's mostly students, but people who saw the team at Guenthersburg Park and then joined keep coming.
A great community
Thorsten Ostermeier has been playing on the Frankfurt team for almost two years. He likes the challenge that quidditch offers. "It is a very fast and yet very strategic game - and because of the many positions there is something for everyone," he says. Much more exciting than just playing soccer, says Michael Lienzing. "Footballers play with only one ball - we play with five," he says with a laugh. Lienzing has travelled from Darmstadt. He plays on the team there at the university. The two teams often practice together or support each other. "It's like a big community," he says. In general, Quidditch is competitive but still a very tolerant sport, says Heise. "There's a lot of emphasis on that, after the game we're all friends. Everyone is taken seriously here."
Nina Heise would like to see the sport become better known and established in Germany. "A Quidditch league would be cool," she says. But first the world championship is coming up and there she wants to give everything. Tickets for the World Cup will be available on June 23 and 24 directly before the games at the Rebstock grounds.
(Text by Amelie Buskotte)
