Status: 08/16/2023 8:44 p.m
The German blind footballers are still waiting for their first goal at the World Championships in Birmingham after the second group game. After losing 2-0 to Argentina at the start, the European champions had to settle for a goalless draw against Austria.
The German selection urgently needs a win at their World Cup premiere on Friday in the final group game against India to keep the chance of reaching the semi-finals. But even a win might not be enough to get them through if Austria, who have the better goal difference, beat Argentina. The South Americans have already qualified for the semifinals. They are considered title favorites along with the Japanese, who lead the table in the parallel group.
Further information
Breathe a sigh of relief at Thoya Küster from FC St. Pauli and Co. Thanks to crowdfunding, her participation in the title fights in Italy is secured. more
EM heroine Küster excluded from the tournament
In the German team, which consists of eight players from FC St. Pauli as well as Amir Schwarz (Borussia Dortmund) and Melissa Potraz (Fortuna Düsseldorf), the absence of Thoya Küster weighs heavily. The 17-year-old shot the team to victory last year at the European Championships in Pescara, Italy, almost single-handedly. The best blind footballer in Europe was now banned from participating in the World Cup in England shortly before the start of the tournament.
Slightly too strong eyesight bursts World Cup dream
“Unfortunately, Thoya was classified by the ophthalmologists on site as unfit to play. There are always classifications in the area of Paralympic sports. And in the field of visually impaired sports, the visual ability of the athletes is more or less measured. In Pescara, Thoya was B3 (“visually impaired”, the editorial office) classified, but under the condition that they present themselves to the classifiers again at the next competition and bring new test results with them. And these examination results plus the examinations then carried out in England have shown that Thoya’s vision in her better eye is 0.1 percent too strong. So she was very, very just not classified,” said national coach Wolf Schmidt to NDR.
Coach Schmidt: “I think she’s super sad”
Küster, who was honored as Hamburg’s female sports talent last year, is not eligible to play for the entire World Cup. And as perfidious as it sounds: The St. Pauli player can only participate in major tournaments if her eyesight has deteriorated by then. “And that must then be proven with a new finding,” said Schmidt, who is also her coach at the Kiezclub.
He was not yet able to speak to the 17-year-old after the devastating news about her exclusion from the World Cup, said Wolf: “But I do think she is super, super sad, because of course it would have been the biggest thing for her in terms of sport, here Being there. I think that’s really eating into her.”
Germany’s blind footballers “pioneers”
Although the German blind footballers showed good performances in the first two World Cup games even without Küster, they have not yet rewarded themselves with a goal for their courageous performances. “But we only had a small chance of winning the title with Thoya. Argentina and Japan simply have better conditions. They have their own women’s leagues. We, on the other hand, are pioneers who have to finance themselves,” explained Schmidt.
Because women’s blind football, unlike men’s blind football, does not yet have official Paralympic status, the players do not receive any funding. The start of the World Cup could only be financed through crowdfunding.
Further information
The 16-year-old scored all the goals in Germany’s two 4-0 wins against England in the finals and was voted Player of the Tournament. more
This topic in the program:
Current | 08/16/2023 | 8:00 p.m
2023-08-16 20:17:18
#Küster #goals #blind #footballers #World #Cup
