Stephan Prantl

Stephan and his friends tirelessly visited construction sites to get material for ramps, which they then placed under the large bridges near the Cologne exhibition centre. Unfortunately, these ramps rarely had a long life, as all too often they were removed the same evening by the public order office.

André Maletz from the Cologne Youth Park observed the misery and took Stephan under his wing. André gave Cologne freestyle a home, directly involving Stephan in the organisation of the first Jugendpark event from 1984 and handing over the reins to him a few years later. These contests gave rise to the world-famous competition series under the label "BMX Cologne".

But his personal career is also impressive. Right from the start, he dominated the ramp competitions in the youth park, performed at shows with the PTR trick team and travelled to the first Freestyle World Championships in England in 1987, where he took second place with his lip tricks and extraordinary style.

After his first sponsor MRD - March Racing Division, he rode for GT for many years, travelling the world and especially the west coast of the USA, where he was the first German freestyler since the pioneers of PTR to draw attention to himself. He got a page in the legendary US BMX magazine "GO" and a part in the BMX video "Ride On" from 1992, which was tantamount to an accolade in the small scene.

From 1994 onwards, Stephan rode shows as part of the Schwinn Z-Team with Klaus Dyba and Axel Reichertz. The three of them even designed a frame for Schwinn, but it never really made it to series production. After Schwinn discontinued the programme in 1996, Stephan switched to the GT/Dyno Europa team.

As late as 1997, he finished fourth in the World Championships in Eindhoven, Netherlands, in the dirt, further proof of his versatility on the bike.

But that was not all. In 1990, Stephan founded the brand "Wethepeople" with his friends Lars Dorsch and Stephan Rose, under which he launched T-shirts and later also BMX parts and complete bikes onto the market. He designed the first 14mm hubs under the name "Point" (later "P Products") and opened the BMX shop "Busy P" in 1994 after Mat Hoffman gave him this nickname at the World Championships that same year. The name was certainly apt: Stephan not only organised the entire contest, but also took part in it himself. A few years later, "Busy P" evolved into "wtp Distribution", which for many years was the largest wholesaler for BMX (freestyle) brands in Germany.

Stephan Prantl was naturally the first choice for the German BMX Hall Of Fame under the category "Freestylers". He was there from the birth of freestyle sport in Germany, successful as an athlete and later the first point of contact for BMXers throughout the country as a dealer and wholesaler. The BMX Cologne contest series, which he initiated and organised, celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2024, making it the longest-running contest series in the world. Welcome to the German BMX Hall Of Fame: Stephan Prantl.