Competing on the field but united off it
What a weekend! For the first time in five years, our European plants were able to compete with one another in a soccer tournament. With perfect summer weather on a natural grass field in Homberg, Germany, the men and women delivered exciting duels all day long as they were cheered on by hundreds of spectators. In the end, the team from the Homberg plant emerged victorious, but that was not the focus of the day.
The teams all arrived the day before the tournament: by bus from Wuppertal, by plane from Spain, and by minivan from Slovakia (which involved a journey of over 1,000 km and a night of heavy thunderstorms). In fact, ten Czechs even completed the journey to Germany by bicycle [562 kilometers in five days]. To get people in the spirit of the event, everyone was offered a chance to view Homberg’s production operations, before (some of the) people headed off to bed for an early night in order to be rested for the tournament.
Eight teams traveled to the event
Each team was hoping to achieve something different as the tournament kicked off on Saturday. Whereas a few of the teams were made up of players who in some cases hardly knew one another, others had actually started training weeks in advance. There were two groups with four teams each taking part: Group A consisted of the Osterode Plant, Homberg Plant, Museros Plant with the support of Galol, and the Robert Schröder Group teams, while Group B boasted teams from the Turnov Plant, Bardejov Plant, Holding and Automotive, and a Mixed team from various KAMAX companies.
Once the ball got rolling, everyone was treated to some good, competitive soccer. The Spanish team passed the ball around well, but proved unable to turn their possession into goals and were less than happy with some of the referee’s decisions. In addition to putting on a show on the field, the Robert Schröder Group worked to create a good atmosphere among the fans. In the end, it was the plant teams from Homberg and Osterode who managed to compete for the final and the team from our founding plant came out on the losing end.
Camaraderie trumps rivalry
Led by their top defender Johana Jeřábková from the B team of Slovan Liberec, a club playing in the Czech First League, and cheered on by their tireless photographer, the team from Turnov in Group B earned particular respect. When injuries meant that their opponents from Bardejov were no longer able to field a full team, their colleagues from Turnov did not hesitate to don Slovakian jerseys and help them out – even when these two teams met in the final group match. Just one of many examples of collegial support and camaraderie on this day. Various plants also had to make people available for the Mixed team, representing various parts of KAMAX – the team even finished in fourth place. So even though the teams may have been separated by the colors of their jerseys on this day, they were joined together by their mutual support and shared celebrations.
“It’s really incredible to see how our colleagues from almost every one of our European locations have been able to get together here with their families to have fun and celebrate the occasion.”
Jörg Steins, CEO of the KAMAX Group
When he officially kicked off the tournament, Jörg Steins, CEO of the KAMAX Group, was emphatic: “It’s really incredible to see how our colleagues from almost every one of our European locations have been able to get together here with their families to have fun and celebrate the occasion.” It is a tradition that he would like to see happen more often. Not only do employees’ children get the chance to enjoy miniature forklifts, bounce houses, goal-shooting contests, table soccer, and face painting, but the employees themselves can meet one another and network over free food and drink.
In the final, the team from Homberg plant faced off against the Holding and Automotive team. Lars Deijk was outstanding in goal, making several world-class saves to keep their opponents scoreless, so one goal was enough for the victory. As a result, the home team was able to hold on to the trophy, but everyone joined together to celebrate the occasion.
Our thanks to the entire organization team, the referees, and everyone who took part, and made this tournament possible.
KXpress
