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Days, 7 Good News: In a Frenzy of Numbers - 414 for Germany, a 65-Year-Old Legend and a 73-Year-Old Head Coach

LISTICLE | 11/09/2022
7 days, 7 good news stories: a heroic victory in the Tour-de-France, a head wash for the bathing cap ignoramuses and a football club taking a stand against racism.
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We think so: Good news is needed every now and then. Especially from the world of sports. In our Good News we serve you seven news items every week that make our - and hopefully your - sports heart beat faster. Because the news is fun. Because they are trend-setting. Because they show new trends. Because they sprinkle a pinch of absurdity in a much too serious world. Or because they simply bring joy. The main thing is to be in a good mood - that's our motto in this news format. And we start right away with the end of a three-year soccer break, the 65-year-old legend Bernhard Langer and 414 hopefuls for next year's Special Olympics.

1

The End of a Three-Year Hiatus

Imagine the Bundesliga taking a three-year break. Unimaginable? Maybe in Germany, but not in Namibia. There, the first league match since 2019 just took place. A dispute between the Namibian Football Association (NFA) and the professional league Namibia Premier League over relegation matches triggered the permanent interruption. In the meantime, many coaches sought new professions, and once-hopeful 18-year-old talents became 21-year-old footballers with no playing experience. "We have worries about a lost generation," former coach Ricardo Mannetti told BBC Sport. But now they are kicking again - the African Stars won their first match 1-0.

2

Man with Mask Sings for Mask Athlete

The NFL couldn't have picked a more fitting show act for its Germany game: The athletes with the mask hired the singer with the mask for the game of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers against the Seattle Seahawks in Munich. The German rapper Cro may heat up the 67,000 football fans together with cheerleaders - and shows in a video how an NFL helmet turns into the Cro mask.

3

Briton Now Also Brazilian

He is British and now also Brazilian. Formula One record world champion Lewis Hamilton may not have achieved much in sporting terms this season, but for his impressive lifetime achievements as a racing driver, the Brazilian Congress has now named him an honorary citizen of Brazil. "I love Brazil, I have always loved Brazil," said the 37-year-old, who has now found a second home.

4

You Are Our 414 Hopefuls

The list is long: 252 men and 162 women, a total of 356 athletes and 58 unified partners, have been nominated for the German team for next year's Special Olympics World Games. "The team includes 414 personalities who want to be good hosts for the 7000 athletes from all over the world," said Christiane Krajewski, president of Special Olympics Germany, at the presentation. Most of the athletes with intellectual disabilities are competing in team sports such as soccer and handball. There are also track and field athletes and swimmers.

5

Women's Soccer - a Flash in the Pan

A flash in the pan: Even after the European Women's Soccer Championship, interest in Germany is as high as ever. After just the seventh match day, more spectators came to the stadiums than on all 22 match days of the previous season. The current figure is around 120,000 spectators - last season, there were a good 108,000 at the end of the season. This disproves all the skeptics who saw the European Championship as just a snapshot.

6

Legend More and More Legendary

He is a golf legend and is becoming more and more legendary. Bernhard Langer (65) has now won his 44th title on the senior tour for golfers aged 50 and over. The German from Anhausen won the tournament in his adopted home of Boca Raton, Florida, which leaves him just one victory short of the all-time record of 45 tournament wins. Those who think of the senior tour as exercise for older men and women should only look at the prize money. Langer has collected more than 33 million US dollars. What a lavish pension increase.

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No age limits for head coaches

And another sports grandpa at the peak of his career: Dusty Baker, at 73, is now the oldest coach to lead a team to a championship in one of the four major North American sports leagues. Baker's Houston Astros won Major League Baseball's World Series. Baker had to wait 25 years as head coach to win a championship, and now he wants to do it again. "I've said if I win one, I want to win a second one," he said.

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