Colorful running event on the Lousberg - The 35th Lousberglauf inspires

Fun and sporting challenge at the Lousberglauf

Whether you're an amateur athlete or a professional runner, for many Aachen students, taking part in the Lousberglauf is an integral part of their time at university. And they usually don't just take part once. The enthusiastic participants come back year after year to face the challenging 5,555-meter run. Prof. Dr. Matthias Wessling, Vice-Rector of the RWTH, is enthusiastic about the combination of fun and sporting challenge at this event. The Lousberglauf is like studying: there are highs and lows and in the end everyone reaches the finish line in their own time. The colorful mix of student participants, other university members and citizens of the city of Aachen make for a diverse event.

Cooperation between the universities and the city

As always, the Lousberglauf was fully booked this year. 2,000 runners took to the starting line. Most of them study at the RWTH or FH Aachen. University sporting events such as the Lousberglauf make a valuable contribution to cooperation between universities. Prof. Dr. Christof Schelthoff, Vice-Rector for Strategic Planning, Financing and Management at FH Aachen, emphasizes the importance of events such as the Lousberglauf. At the Lousberglauf, students from the universities meet and experience this run together. This strengthens the contact with the other universities, but also with the city.

Final of the NRW UniLauf Cup

Traditionally, the final of the NRW UniLauf Cup takes place as part of the Lousberglauf. In this special competition, runners from all over NRW compete against each other in four races in Dortmund, Cologne, Münster and Aachen. After an exciting race, Team Cologne I was able to secure overall victory. Team Aachen I followed in second place, with third place shared by the running team from the University of Bonn and Team Cologne II.

First Lousberglauf costume competition

In addition to the top sporting performance at the NRW UniLauf Cup, there was of course no shortage of fun at this event. Every year, numerous runners take to the starting line in extraordinary costumes. Ulrich Weber, Head of the University Sports Center, sees this as a unique characteristic of the run, even beyond university sports. Not only professional runners take part in the Lousberglauf, but also amateur runners who run in costumes, ski boots and other fancy dress. This makes the Lousberglauf a cult event in Aachen. This year, a costume competition was held for the first time, in which the runners with the most creative costumes were rewarded. The winner was a group of runners who conquered the Lousberg dressed as a caterpillar.

Voluntary commitment of the Rütscher Straße residential towers

The Lousberglauf is an event with cult status that originated over 35 years ago as a student initiative by the residents of the towers in Rütscher Straße. The HSZ has been organizing the Lousberglauf together with the residents of the towers since 1989. Matthias Wilhelm has been the main event coordinator for the towers since 2019. He talks about the importance of the Lousberglauf for the students and especially the residents of the towers. This run is something very special for the residents of the towers, who have maintained this event for decades. The Lousberglauf 2024 was joined by around 150 volunteers who live in the towers and support the Lousberglauf.

Support from the Studierendenwerk

The Lousberglauf is closely linked to the residential towers on Rütscher Straße, which are supported by the Studierendenwerk. The Studierendenwerk is also involved in the Lousberglauf and provides important infrastructure such as electricity and facilities. For the first time, the exhausted runners were provided with fruit by the Studierendenwerk in the finishing area after the race. Ute von Drathen from the Studierendenwerk reports: For the Studierendenwerk, the Lousberglauf has become a social event. The Studierendenwerk is not only involved behind the scenes, but also takes part with a team of twenty running members.

Sponsoring partner STAWAG

The Lousberglauf powered by STAWAG would be unthinkable without the help of its cooperation partners. As the name suggests, STAWAG is the main sponsor of the Lousberglauf. However, STAWAG is a partner of university sports not only in this area, but also in many others. Kirsten Haacke from STAWAG's Corporate Communications department is always happy to take part in the Lousberglauf. It has already become a tradition at STAWAG to support the Lousberglauf. Over the decades, the event has become increasingly professionalized and has nevertheless retained its special character.

Gil Weicherding from Aachen and Anna Gehring from Cologne win the Lousberglauf

At the end of the evening, the winners were honored on stage. The clear winner among the men was Gil Weicherding from Team Aachen. With a time of 17:08 minutes, he was the fastest to finish. Anna Gehring, who competed for the University of Cologne, won the women's race on the challenging course with a time of 19:35 minutes

All other results and information can be found on the HSZ website.