This is Freak City for me: Interview with the wine partner of the Bamberg Baskets winemaker LUKAS SCHMIDT
What excites you about the sport of basketball?
To be honest, I came to basketball like the young
woman to child. Here in our 300-inhabitant village of Bullenheim,
I never had any contact. But then Oli (Oliver Hahn /Sponsoring & Partnerships Bamberg Baskets) invited me to a game and sat me in the first row on the sidelines in the BROSE ARENA. I can still remember it very well, not only because it was the game against Bayern and also the loudest game of the season. It was unbelievable to me how much positive energy and good humor there is in this sport, both among the players and the spectators. For me, this sport is the smartest I have ever seen.
What fascinates you about basketball, especially in Bamberg?
I've always heard that the atmosphere is supposed to be so incredibly good. In fact, I can take any of my business partners into the hall blindfolded and they're thrilled afterwards. It's not just about the sport, the event that the Bamberg Baskets are putting on is second to none.
Why do you support the Bamberg Baskets?
We create many wine concepts ourselves, try our hand at
To continuously develop the segment and to achieve a number one position. I also see this vision in the company and
the Bamberg Baskets club, because the whole thing with this vision so
to establish that it is not only for the next two months, but
is sustainable for the next five to ten years, excites me
as a young entrepreneur.
What does Freak City mean to you?
As a child of winemakers and gastronomy, we are all always crazy.
I see exactly this “little guy on the waffle” in Freak City too – and I mean it in a very loving way.
Have you ever thrown the ball into the basket yourself?
At my second game in the arena, just before I left,
I got a call from Oli. He just said that I was in the
come down to the edge of the field at the first quarter break, and then
to throw a ball there. I immediately ran into my garden shed and looked for a ball.
It was a football, but I was able to play it in the last ten
Minutes before departure we took a little walk around
because my last real basketball shot was a very long time ago. Then in the hall in front of 5,000 people there
Throwing it in at the top was certainly one of the most exciting moments in
this year.
Was it as easy as it always seems?
The moment you stand down there on the court in front of the basket,
you see how damn far away he is and how damn big
the ball is.
What has been your greatest Bamberg basketball moment so far?
Every time I am at the game and then from the lounge into the
Arena and everyone here is in a really good mood – this moment
has ensured that I now attend every game. It fascinates me every time.
Which Bamberg basketball player would you like to play with?
want to shoot a few baskets and why?
In fact, I would like to meet Karsten Tadda
He has a very charismatic personality and manages to be a team player and leader. I always see him as the secret weapon.
Where do you see the Bamberger Baskets next season?
I was able to join one and a half or two years ago and I am convinced
that we can catapult ourselves forward with the new concept.
I see very, very great opportunities there.
What else could your company and the Bamberg Baskets tackle together?
We launched the first wine this year with the Alley-Oop.
that the Bamberg Baskets have ever had. What we as winemakers can create is more unity and more solidarity, which will then bring the entire Baskets community, from sponsors, fans, employees to players, even closer together.
What could the Bamberg Baskets learn from your company
learn?
The positive perspective, after every low point you have, not
to talk badly about everything. Even if there was a bad game, it is important to find the positive in it and learn from it. That is how I go through
life and that is how I shape my company.
What does it take to increase the importance of basketball as a whole?
in Germany closer to the major sports, such as
football?
I would like to ask the question here whether that is actually the goal? It is incredibly comfortable to position yourself perfectly in a niche. I think it is madness to constantly compare basketball with football. I find football to be rather arrogant and elitist in some areas and if basketball gets there, we will probably no longer be able to be partners.
Looking at Bamberg basketball - what else is important to you?
The topic of sustainability is very important to me. I believe that
society in Franconia and Bamberg to be very stable and value- oriented and in this context I believe that solidarity and tackling things together is simply the most important thing at the moment.
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