The German Six Day racing circuit was dying quickly in the last few years. Prestigious events in Stuttgart, Munich and Dortmund were stopped after spectators stayed home. This is about to change, as races in Cologne and Hannover are planned, starting next December. Currently, only two events, in Berlin and Bremen, are still going on every year.
In the 1970's and 1980's there were still a dozen races throughout the country, so doubling the current amount of race venues would be a step in the right direction. Christian Stoll and his business partner Frank Boelé want to organize the races in Cologne and Hannover. "Both are cities with a big cycling tradition," Stoll said to www.rad-net.de.
The "Weihnachtspreis" (Christmas prize) is tentatively scheduled for December 15-20, 2011. The Cologne Six Days are expected to start in November of 2012. The motto? "This is how carnival starts", with November 11 being the official start of the carnival season. There are also plans for a third Six Day race, in Leipzig. The latter event is planned for 2012 as well.
Stoll works as the announcer for the races in Bremen and Berlin. "I am really interested that this fascinating sport stays alive in Germany," he said. Six Day specialist Robert Bartko, who won together with his partner Robert Bengsch, is thrilled. "This is absolutely the right signal. I hope that some sponsors will jump onboard as well," Bartko said to www.rad-net.de.
Stoll said that he and Boelé analyzed the market well. "This is not harakiri. We bank on well-filled smaller arenas. Six Days live from their atmosphere." The duo hopes for 6,000 people in Hannover per evening. They have made further plans and talked to arena managers in Frankfurt and Mannheim.
The future at least in Berlin looks bright, as heavy planning is going for 2017. Then the 100th anniversary of Six Day racing in the German capital will be celebrated.