From May 29 to June 1, 2025, the University of Cologne hosted the German University Championships (DHM) for backstroke games. In badminton alone, more than 200 students from all over Germany took to the courts. The Karlsruhe Institute of Technology was represented by eight highly motivated players.

Team competition - "Final Four"

After strong performances in the preliminary round, the KIT team qualified for the Final Four. The team set off for Cologne at 6:45 a.m. on Thursday morning. There they played Bonn, Jena and Cologne for the championship title. Despite many exciting and close matches, the Karlsruhe team had to admit defeat to all three opponents and finished fourth behind Jena.

Singles, doubles and mixed disciplines

Men's singles

The tournament got off to a very unfortunate start: the two KIT players Lorenz and Vincent had to compete against each other in the qualifying round. After three hard-fought sets, Lorenz prevailed, forcing Vincent to retire early. Lorenz then had a tough draw in the main draw and was also eliminated. Things were not much easier for Yajnesh: although he defeated his team-mate Dennis in three sets in round one, he had to acknowledge his opponent's superiority in the second round. Aditya met the eventual doubles runner-up right at the start and was narrowly defeated. Mathis made the longest journey. He dominated his first matches with aplomb, reached the round of 16 and delivered a thrilling three-set thriller against the eventual singles runner-up. After losing the opening set, he clearly won the second round, but was unable to maintain his momentum in the deciding set.

Women's singles

The tournament got off to a mixed start for the KIT ladies. Ronja lost by a wafer-thin margin after three sets and was therefore eliminated early. Eva, on the other hand, was convincing in her first match with a clear victory, but was unable to find any means in her opponent in round 2 and was also eliminated.

Mixed

The luck of the draw was not kind to the Karlsruhe pairings in the mixed. Eva and Vincent were eliminated in the first round. Ronja and Mathis, on the other hand, played their way into the third round in furious fashion: two wins in a row - including a three-set victory - gave rise to hopes of a medal. However, the eventual champion and runner-up in the individual competitions were waiting for them there. Despite a spirited fightback, it was not enough for a coup.

Men's doubles

The men's doubles competition proved to be particularly tough. The duos Lorenz/Vincent and Yajnesh/Aditya both had to concede after their opening matches. Mathis and Dennis won their first match confidently, but then came up against experienced opponents. After three sets, two of which were only decided in extra time, it was the end of the line for them too.

Women's doubles

Ronja and Eva started the women's doubles with a dominant performance and a clear two-set victory. In the next round, they faced a very strong team who stopped their run - also in two sets.

Conclusion

Although it was not enough for precious metal this time, the KIT athletes gained valuable tournament experience, strengthened their team spirit and showed that top-class badminton is played in Karlsruhe. With the knowledge gained, the team is now starting to prepare for the coming season - highly motivated to attack again in a year's time.