15,000 children's sports badges: A celebration of exercise in Neumünster!

15,000 children's sports badges: A celebration of exercise in Neumünster!

On June 13, 2025, a remarkable milestone was celebrated in the Elisabeth Kindergarten in Neumünster: the 15,000th. Children's sports badge was awarded. This festive ceremony, which took place for the fifth time, offered the young athletes the opportunity to receive medals and certificates. There were also many curious parents and committed teachers who supported the children during their sporting activities. As shz.de reports, the sports badge was launched in 2011 by the Neumünster district sports association to motivate children to exercise and sport in a playful way.

The initiator Astrid Drenguis has taken a long and successful path with her idea. Over the last 15 years, numerous campaigns and events have promoted children's interest in exercise. Sparkasse Südholstein has supported this project since the beginning, which has resulted in a total of around 15,000 euros being invested in the implementation and award of the program. The Sparkasse's commitment shows how important local sponsors are for supporting children and their sporting activities.

Sports promotion in context

Germany has a strong sports culture, which currently enables millions of people to be part of a wide range of sporting activities. The promotion of sports projects, as is also implemented in the Elisabeth Kindergarten, also pursues several goals: integration, health and quality of life are the top priority. blog-foerdermittel.de explains: Sport funding is divided into different categories, with both popular sport and competitive sport funding becoming more important. While popular sports promote general participation and leisure activities, competitive sports have a clear focus on competition and top performance.

The city of Neumünster also relies on extensive sports investment support. New construction and renovation of sports facilities are subsidized with up to 25% of the total costs, which is particularly important for clubs that are responsible for the long-term operation and maintenance of the facilities. As neumuenster.de explains, voluntary contributions can also be included in the calculations.

Perspectives for the future

The great commitment of initiatives and sponsors shows that sport is not just a leisure activity. It makes a significant contribution to promoting social integration and education. Projects that appeal to a variety of target groups increase their chances of receiving support from public sponsors, foundations and social lotteries. The German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) plays a central role by financing member organizations' projects and thus not only discovering talent, but also ensuring international competitiveness.

The 15,000th award ceremony was a special occasion for the little athletes from the Elisabeth Kindergarten. Children's sports badge is a further incentive to continue to do sports and be part of a great sports community. The combination of fun, exercise and social interaction makes the project an important part of the children's lives and for the entire community.