Rugby MV Hamburg: Ben Ellermann is hot in the first leg

Hamburg. To overcome deep disappointment, I stayed Ben Alerman no time. On Monday night, he dated the rugby player FC St. Pauli With the seven-man German national team at the European Games in Kraków (Poland) they missed out on qualification for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris with a 10:14 quarter-final defeat to Great Britain.

After the placement matches ended on Wednesday, the 25-year-old traveled to Heidelberg, where he lives and trains at the federal base and studies sports science and psychology. On Thursday, he finished his studies with the last oral exam.

Ellermann remains loyal to St. Pauli

So there is a lot going on in the life of the Hamburg native, who has been going through the DFB’s seventeen selection program for five years and therefore cannot play for his home club, to which he has always remained faithful, since then the league operates only in the world’s most famous fifteen edition.

“I still dream of playing as a professional 15-man rugby,” says the 1.80m, 95kg athlete, “but currently all my sporting focus is on the seven.” This makes sense for two reasons.

On the one hand, because German men are more successful in the Olympic edition, even if it is not enough to get a ticket to Paris or the World Championship qualifiers. On the one hand, because Ben Ellermann can better show off his strengths – explosiveness in contact with opponents and his speed – against fewer opponents.

EM takes place in Eidelstedt

He’d like to prove it next weekend when his personal highlight of the season comes around. In Hamburg, in a temporary arena at the Steinwiesenweg sports facility in Eidelstedt, the second part of the European Championship will be played.

The Germans missed the opportunity to present themselves as favorites for the overall victory in Part One in Portugal at the beginning of June. “However, it’s a great opportunity for us to show what we’re really capable of. It looks like we’re sitting on a toolkit that has yet to be unpacked, which contains all the tools needed to be successful,” he says.

For his parents, younger brother and many of his friends who still live in Hamburg, the home tournament is the first chance to see him play live. “It’s also my anniversary,” says Ben Ellerman, “I started rugby ten years ago.” So there is no more room for disappointment. “I’m just looking forward.”