Dynamo Cup Berlin, Germany - 22 untill 23 May 2010 (Whitsun) (de)

As Berlin has so much to see and do that the organisers have made sure there is enough time to experience at least some of what this “world city” has to offer. The Meeting place on Friday is the impressive “Sportforum” sport and recreation complex just to the east of the city-centre. Here the organisers BFC Dynamo have their clubhouse facilities where also the team leaders reception and open house for the participants will take place. The preliminary rounds of the Dynamo Cup will start on Saturday morning after the Opening Ceremony. Each team will play their first group matches, with little waiting time and the evening is free, after dinner, to make a choice out of the many things to see in Berlin. On Sunday the remaining preliminary matches will be played and the highest placed teams will play the final rounds in the afternoon. Each team need not go home empty handed so the team and captains are invited to collect their team prize and individual tournament medal at the ceremony after the finals. After dinner there is once again time to make a last visit into Berlin centre and although the tournament has ended the organisers would be more than happy to welcome the less adventurous guests to their club home for a last enjoyable evening.

As well as participation at the tournament, Euro-Sportring also arranges the accommodation for the participants. Participants can usually choose between school accommodation, group accommodation (youth accommodation and bungalows) and hotels. The accommodation we offer has been selected with care and must comply to a number of conditions such as are they within easy reach of the sports park, do they provide value for money, are they suitalbe for sports groups, are they safe and are the management fliexible. For more information about the available accommodation please see the pdf pricelist which can be found on this website.

Berlin (3.5 million inhabitants) is the capital of Germany and, since not so long ago, the government centre. The history of Berlin is inseparably tied to the Second World War and its aftermath. In the second half of the 20th Century, Berlin was dominated by the wall which cut it in half and divided East Berlin from West Berlin for almost thirty years. Since the fall of the wall in 1989, Berlin is busily becoming one of the hippest cities in Europe. For historical things to see, such as the Reichstag and Brandenburger Tor, memorials of a recent past, such the Gedächtniskirche and Checkpoint Charlie, and the new Berlin, such as the Holocaust monument and the Sony Centre, Berlin is ‘the place to be!’ You can also shop to your heart’s content in Berlin. Start at Kurfürstendamm, where all the famous stores have a branch, but where you can also find luxurious small boutiques. On the corner of Tauentzienstrasse, there is KaDeWe (Kaufhaus des Westens), the largest store in Europe. Niketown is also on Tauentzienstrasse: 3500 m2 full of the latest sport fashion. There are many places to go out to in Berlin: in the summer there are numerous terraces around Kurfürstendamm and Unter den Linden. Other well-known places for going out are the areas of Kreuzberg and Prenzlauer Berg in the east of the city.

A few places worth seeing:

* Kurfürstendamm - Before reunification, this was the centre of West Berlin. Berliners call it the ‘Kudamm’. Here you will find many shops, restaurants and galleries.

* Gedächtniskirche - At the end of Kudamm, there is the ruin of Kaiser Wilhelm I-Gedächtniskirche. The church was built at the end of the 19th Century in remembrance of Keizer Wilhelm I and it was seriously damaged during the Second World War. Only the tower remains and this is badly damaged. The tower was left un-repaired as a warning of the consequences of war.

* Potzdammerplatz with the DaimlerChrysler Quartier – Before the Second World War, Potzdammerplatz was a busy entertainment district. Not much was left after the war and the wall was built diagonally over the square. Buildings rapidly went up after the fall of the wall: places to go out, restaurants, a enormous covered shopping centre, mega-cinemas and offices, such as the architecturally impressive Sony Centre.

* Checkpoint Charlie – Checkpoint Charlie was a checkpoint at the Berlin wall. The post was closed after the fall of the wall. Later, a copy of the watchhouse was built. The ‘Haus am Checkpoint Charlie’ is a museum with images and objects that tell about the history of the wall and of the many escape attempts from East to West.

* Brandenburger Tor – was built at the end of 18th Century and has since qualified as a symbol of Berlin. Close by is the Reichstag that was repaired after the war. Since 1999, the German parliament has assembled here.

* Fernsehturm – The 365-metre-high television tower on Alexanderplatz is a landmark in former East Berlin. The 207-metre-high rotating Tele-café offers a beautiful view over the city.

* Tiergarten – A large park in the centre of the city. An oasis of peace, except in the weekends in the summer when thousands of real Berliners come here and barbecue.

The Olympia Stadium in Berlin was the background to the final of the World Cup in 2006. The stadium was renovated from 2000 to 2004 especially for this. The number of seats was reduced to 75,000. The stadium was built by order of Adolf Hitler in the thirties for the Olympic Games that were held in Berlin in 1936. The stadium was renovated for the World Cup in 1974. It was also partially covered. The professional club Hertha BSC plays its home games at Olympia Stadium.