Kranzberg: With Istvan Kovacs (56) the SVK-TT men have caught a top player as the new number one.
And that has already paid off.
Kranzberg - With a flawless record of 8-0 individual victories up to the corona-related termination of the season, the Hungarian played a decisive role in making the longed-for promotion from the state to the association league a reality.
One class higher, the veteran should now make his contribution to ensuring that the relegation works.
The season got off to a promising start: Kranzberg beat TSV Oberalteich 9: 3, the 56-year-old won his two games in three straight sets.
In Hungary he played in the extra league for years
Istvan Kovacs began playing table tennis in his Hungarian homeland as early as 1974.
His talent was quickly recognized, and later he moved to the top club Elektromos Györi.
There he played for a few years in the highest class, the extra league.
The 56-year-old proudly reports that this was even higher than the Bundesliga in terms of performance.
But at some point Kovacs wanted to try something new.
In 1996 he ventured to Germany - more precisely to MTV Ingolstadt, for which he was active in the major league and was an absolute guarantee of victory for decades.
Hardly any opponent could take on the veteran - especially his offensive style of play made everyone sweat: “That was my recipe for success.
The defensive, I didn't really like that at the time. "
Waiting for the opponent to make mistakes is not his thing
That changed a little with age.
Kovacs is no longer as brisk as he used to be with the record today: “Now I like to block.
If I can, I still aim aggressively to the point. ”Because waiting for a possible mistake by the opponent - that's not his thing today either.
After his time in Ingolstadt, he went on to TSV Gaimersheim in 2018, which was one of the Kranzberger's league competitors in the last round.
The mood was not ideal there, however, says the Hungarian: "Then Florian Hertwig (SVK department head, editor's note) approached me and I decided to change." He likes it at SV Kranzberg much better: "I feel so comfortable here that I also like to drive from Ingolstadt to practice every Thursday."
He often goes jogging early in the morning
In addition, there is another unit per week in Ingolstadt - because Istvan Kovacs is still ambitious despite his advanced age for an athlete: "I feel very good physically, my condition is also good." It is not for nothing that it is often already from 6 in the morning Early for jogging.
With the Kranzbergen it should definitely work with relegation, he emphasizes: "I hope that I can help with many victories." And it should by no means be his last season, says Kovacs with a laugh: "I want to go up to 60 Cases still play - then let's see. "
Professionally, the Hungarian is employed by the city of Ingolstadt in the main office - and in addition to running, hiking is also a great hobby: “I just really like nature.” But now the focus is on the current season.
Because Kovacs is always happy to be able to compete with - of course mostly younger - opponents.
Bernd Heinzinger
