The journey, which begins in May 2022 at the Siegburg district police department, ends almost 15 months later on Germany's highest mountain. But one step at a time - or rather one step back. It actually starts a little earlier. Markus Rieger, educational specialist at the "Kurve kriegen" (turn the corner) initiative in the Rhein-Sieg district, had the idea at some point to contact Joey Kelly's management. "Role models and credible ambassadors are what young people in the initiative often lack," says Rieger. The musician and endurance athlete Kelly lives in the area. Sport is a method that not only helps to gain access to children and young people at risk of crime. Sport also provides an alternative way to organize leisure time and channel energy.
After getting to know each other for the first time in May 2022, the contact between the initiative and Kelly persisted. He explains his commitment as follows: "When you pursue goals at school and at work, you need perseverance, courage, passion and dedication, just like in sport. Everything I need to achieve any goal. Sport has it all in terms of quality. It's an ideal tool in difficult times for a young person who doesn't yet know where they want to go or is in danger of taking the wrong path."
In March 2023, there will be another meeting with the 51-year-old and his coach Thomas Eickmann. "We thought about what we could do together," recalls Markus Rieger. "Joey came up with the idea of climbing the Zugspitze together with our participants and the team." This is obviously easier said than done in many respects. Shortly after, Kelly and Eickmann, who organises the event thanks to his good contacts, present the project to the parents and their children. The enthusiasm is great and five youngsters start training with Rieger and his colleague Jörg Cadsky just one week later. At the end of the three month training course, two boys are on board.
After months of preparation, the event kicks off in Siegburg on August 1, 2023. On the evening of the same day, the six-strong hiking team reaches the Höllentalangerhütte at 1,387 meters. Rieger: "The next morning, the alarm clock rang at 4.45 a.m. and shortly after 2 p.m. we were standing with our mountain guides at the golden summit cross on the Zugspitze. It was an incredible feeling." A feeling that doesn't end with the descent. In January 2024, the troupe revisited the adventure at a meeting at Joey Kelly's house. "For me, the special thing about 'Kurve kriegen' is the close cooperation between the police and educational professionals," says the Kelly Family manager. "It's just great that this exists."
"Of course, this was a kind of lighthouse project, which is not our daily work," Markus Rieger sums up. "But it showed the young people, as well as us professionals, what you can achieve if you keep at it, if the motivation is right. Then you can
literally reach the top."