As a national sponsor of the German Sporthilfe Foundation, Tipico established the “Tipico Champion Fund” to provide particularly successful and promising elite athletes with additional, individualized support, enabling them to further develop athletically and take the step towards world-class performance.
The “Tipico Champion Fund” aims to deliver measurable, holistic performance improvements through individualized funding. Athletes can apply for support in areas such as training and performance optimization, equipment costs, physical and mental health, recovery as well as nutrition.
The fund is tailored to the individual needs of athletes who have already achieved notable initial successes. It provides targeted support where the need is greatest on the path to medals and titles. This funding measure therefore targets areas not covered by existing programs within the sports system.
For this new funding opportunity, athletes from the Sporthilfe top team as well as those from the potential team who have been part of the top team within the past 24 months can apply via an application form and a 30-second short video. In the video, they introduce themselves and explain specifically how they intend to use the budget and what sporting goals they aim to achieve.
After approval by the respective sports federation, the Sporthilfe evaluation committee decides which athletes will receive funding from the fund for their individual and tailored measures.
The evaluation committee is the central funding council of Sporthilfe and decides on all individual funding measures for athletes – including those for the Tipico Champion Fund.
The committee consists of former world-class athletes and a representative of the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB). All members serve in an honorary capacity and contribute their expertise and experience in the field of outstanding sporting achievement.
The evaluation committee currently consists of the following members: Rugby international Till Behnke, Paralympic swimming champion Kirsten Bruhn, Olympic canoeing champion Olaf Heukrodt, javelin world champion Steffi Nerius, skiing world champion Miriam Vogt, swimming world champion Mark Warnecke, Olympic judo champion Frank Wieneke, and a representative of the DOSB.
