Nordhorn Classic Open 2024 at 01./02.06.2025

Lars Brinkhaus and Marcus Lüdorf win all four possible titles at the Nordhorn Classic Open Nordhorn (HH). Lars Brinkhaus (SC Marklohe) in Class I and Marcus Lüdorf (Polizei SV Recklinghausen) in Class III were the first two players to win singles and doubles on both days of the 21st edition of the Nordhorn Classic Open, the most important tournament for classical table tennis in Germany. They won with both the hardbat and the sandpaper bat. For the seventh time, the organisers SV Vorwärts Nordhorn used uniform bats on both tournament days. No player was allowed to use their own racket, but had to play with the racket lying on the table. This ensured absolute equality of opportunity. Both finalists on Saturday know this rule well, as they are regular starters at the Nordhorn tournament. Former champion Ulrich Watermann (TuS Bexterhagen) still failed to win the individual final on his fifth attempt. Former Nordhorn player Lars Brinkhaus was clearly superior in his third final appearance and also won the doubles final alongside Manfred Garwels (BV Essen). 36-year-old Oberliga player Brinkhaus also lived up to his role as favourite on Sunday, when the matches were played with uniform sandpaper rackets as they were 100 years ago. He won the doubles alongside Watermann, who was once again runner-up in the singles, taking his eighth doubles title in total at his 16th start in the tournament. Jens Mitzlaff from SV Motor Wolgast in Class II and Marcus Lüdorf in Class III also played in all four finals. While the player from Recklinghausen won both singles and both doubles with Marc Fielers (TuS St. Arnold), the player from Mecklenburg had to congratulate tournament newcomer Frank Mahler (SV Werder Bremen) in the Sandpaper II singles on Sunday. He had dominated the doubles with his team-mate Lukas Krüger. The local players in the lower hardbat classes were unable to build on their successes of recent years. Jonas Gellink (Hardbat III) and Magnus Sarnow (Hardbat IV) took second and third place in the singles, but missed out on winning the tournament this time. Andreas Siemering (TV Voiswinkel) secured the title in the Hardbat IV competition, who also came second in the Hardbat III doubles with his father Thorsten from Schüttorf. As at last year's anniversary tournament, only German players were at the start. The guests from the Netherlands, Belgium and France, who have dominated the two main classes Hardbat I and Sandpaper I in recent years, have not yet returned after the three-year corona break. While the response on the Saturday of the tournament in the Hardbat classes was satisfactory, organiser SV Vorwärts Nordhorn had hoped for more than just four entries in each of the Sandpaper III and IV classes.