Education & Research > Studying in Germany : Cologne's 'Spoho': Where athletes study and train

Studying in Germany: Cologne's Sport University is the world's only exclusive sports university

Cologne's 'Spoho': Where athletes study and train

August 18, 2009

Affectionately named the Spoho by many of its 5,300 students, Cologne's Sport University (Sporthochschule) is more than just an educational institution. It's the country's one and only “sports-exclusive” university, dedicated to promoting every aspect of competitive sports.

With the IAAF World Championship in Athletics on in Berlin, Young Germany takes a closer look at some of the Spoho's most interesting institutions.

Attracting future stars

Kabelo Kgosiemang is one of the world's best high jumpers. The 23 year-old “Botswana sports person of the year” is living proof of the athletic and academic excellence of Cologne's Sport University. When the 6'2" athlete came to Cologne to train with coach Dr. Wolfgang Ritzdorf in January 2006, his personal best was 2.16 meters – a promising height for a young high jumper, but still far from world class.

The development that followed was miraculous: In the same year, Kabelo improved his personal best by 14cm, became African Champion with a world class height of 2.30m and went on to win the All Africa Games to qualify for the 2007 World Championship in Osaka.

His rapid development as an athlete not only goes to show his talent, but underscores how the Spoho's environment is tuned to success.

World class facilities

The actual facilities where Kabelo Kgosiemang trained bear the official IAAF Accredited Training Centre label (with fewer than 20 such centres globally). Belonging to the university, the ATC Cologne attracts up-and-coming talents from all over the world looking for the right environment to help them reach world class level.

Scholarships help many would-be athletes realise this important step in their careers, the list including Kgosiemang from Botswana, William Woodcock from the Seychelles, and Karim Lotfy from Egypt. Their proven success as high jumpers was reason enough for the IAAF to appoint the ATC 'World High Jump Centre' in 2007.

But the Spoho is more than just the World High Jump Centre. There are numerous internationally recognized institutions connected to the university, including the 'Momentum project'. Founded by the German Research Centre for Competitive Sports, this institution is dedicated to accelerate research, with its findings then used to develop superior training programs and specialized diets for athletes.

An athlete at the Sport University

The interdisciplinary project involves scientists, coaches and athletes, working with five other institutes at the university. “We have about 3,000 parameters that are evaluated,” says Eva Engelmeyer, who manages the research centre. “The data such as blood levels, heart rate or body temperature are saved in a personal athlete file.”

Strict doping tests

The Sport University not only promotes athletic talents, it also caters directly to the IAAF World Championships. Cologne's 'Institute for Biochemistry', for instance, conducts doping tests on-site during competitions. With an award-winning staff and ground breaking results, this part of the Sport University has long been one of the world's leading institutions in doping analytics and an important part of the international fight against doping in competitive sports.

One of its branches is the 'Centre for Preventive Doping Research' which aims to anticipate the next steps in doping abuse. Just recently, scientists at the Institute for Biochemistry developed a test that detects gene doping, which is believed to be the next big challenge.

Study and sport

Students at the Spoho appreciate the degree to which competitive sports are promoted at Cologne. There are about 60 high-class athletes enrolled at the Sport University and they all profit from the flexibility of the system, which allows top athletes to reconcile their studies and their professional careers.

Norbert Stein works for the Spoho's rectorate and is specifically appointed to assist top athletes. “I help them to coordinate dates and postpone important exams if they need time to enter competitions,” says Stein. “In return, they have to write term papers or give presentations to make up for it.”

One of his students, Tobias Scherbarth, would have entered the IAAF World Championship, had a severe injury not forced the pole vaulter out. "The Spoho has always had top athletes among its students", says Stein. “Our hockey players, for instance, brought home five medals from the last Olympic Games.”

In the end, competitive sports are all about results. The World Championships in Berlin are no exception – and “raising the bar” will have a very literal meaning for ATC Cologne's high jumper Kabelo Kgosiemang.