--- title: "Andre Bertelsmeier and Wim Verdonschot in TTBL Bad Königshofen; Olympics 2028 bid." sdDatePublished: "2026-08-16T11:51:00Z" source: "http://www.ttbl.de/en/news/post/6a816634a878c60001fb0c7b" topics: - name: "table tennis" identifier: "medtop:20001083" locations: - "Bavaria" - "Berlin" - "Erfurt" - "Gummersbach" - "Dortmund" - "Mettmann" - "Düsseldorf" - "Fulda" - "Saarbrücken" - "Germany" - "United States" - "Romania" - "France" - "Poland" --- Andre Bertelsmeier and Wim Verdonschot in TTBL Bad Königshofen; Olympics 2028 bid. “Local Heroes” in the TTBL: Bertelsmeier and Verdonschot in the Spotlight “Local Heroes” in the TTBL: Bertelsmeier and Verdonschot in the Spotlight The spotlight in the new season of the Table Tennis Bundesliga (TTBL) undoubtedly belongs to Olympic champion Fan Zhendong (Borussia Düsseldorf) and, of course, the returning world runner-up Hugo Calderano (1. FC Saarbrücken-TT). But “local heroes”—that is, homegrown stars—also hold a tremendous fascination for TTBL fans in the arenas and in front of their screens. In the second year since German icon Timo Boll retired, the “local heroes”—behind the “establishment” represented by the experienced national team quartet of Dang Qiu (Düsseldorf), Patrick Franziska (Saarbrücken), Benedikt Duda (TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt), and Dimitrij Ovtcharov (TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell)—the youngsters Wim Verdonschot (Borussia Düsseldorf) and Andre Bertelsmeier (TSV Bad Königshofen) are likely to be the most exciting players for the fan community. Above all, Bertelsmeier wants to consistently build on his already remarkable international results in the TTBL following his debut season. In any case, expectations for Bad Königshofen’s young star haven’t gotten any lower: At the recent German Championships in Erfurt, Bertelsmeier blocked former world No. 1 Ovtcharov’s path to the podium and, alongside Verdonschot, defended their doubles title; then went on to win gold in singles at the U21 European Championships in Cluj-Napoca, as well as gold in doubles once again with Verdonschot, and finally turned heads at the US Smash in Los Angeles with a very unfortunate 2-3 loss to the struggling Olympic silver medalist Truls Möregardh. However, the 20-year-old doesn’t want to let the increased attention distract him. “Expectations don’t really affect me that much because I focus more on short-term goals and try to get better,” Bertelsmeier explained on his club’s website, describing how he deals with public impatience. In general, the right-hander from Westphalia—who was courted by several other TTBL clubs in 2025 before moving to Bad Königshofen—feels he’s on track following his brief foray into the top 60 of the world rankings: “I believe I’m on the right track. Of course, I try every day to get the most out of myself, to continue climbing the world rankings in the coming years, and to perform better in the Bundesliga as well, in order to help the team even more.” During his rookie season with the Franconians, Bertelsmeier, who frequently faced opposing top players, posted a 5–12 record. At the same time, Verdonschot became the most successful player in the second division while playing for Union Velbert in more than twice as many matches. The Berlin native, who returned to Dortmund at the end of the summer after two years in Velbert, posted a 29–6 record. However, Verdonschot earned even more prestige last season by winning his first titles at the WTT tournaments in the 2025 Feeder category in Gdańsk and, this year, in Lille. In the world rankings at the start of the new TTBL season, the right-hander was ranked number five in Germany, slightly ahead of his doubles partner Bertelsmeier, who was at the bottom of the top 60. From Verdonschot’s perspective, many small factors have now come together to form a bigger picture. “I’ve been able to develop really well in Velbert, and my hard work is gradually paying off, even though I never would have expected to win those WTT titles at the time. It’s all really wonderful for me,” said the fifth-place finisher at the German Championships on the Borussia website. Verdonschot is optimistic about his future: “Andre and I are getting closer and closer to the top players. Of course, there’s still a big gap, but we’re working on closing it. For me, this is a big step into the first Bundesliga, and I’m still young. But I’m also someone like Patrick Franziska, Dimitrij Ovtcharov, or Benedikt Duda—players I want to surpass. And then it doesn’t matter whether you’re still just a prospect or already a star; what really counts is the sport itself—and of course I’m trying to give it my all so I can catch up to them all as quickly as possible.” The BVB youngster has already set himself a major goal: the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. “Right now,” Verdonschot said ahead of his Bundesliga debut, “is when it will be decided whether I really have what it takes to become truly great one day. I’m going to give it my all.” Featured images above: Andre Bertelsmeier of TSV Bad Königshofen (Photo: Patrick Wichmann) and Wim Verdonschot of BVB (WTT)