24.10.2025 | Guest contributions
Around 3.000 participants gathered at the Erfurt Exhibition Centre from 26 to 28 September for the nationwide ‘Johanniter Day’. The core of the event was the first aid and emergency rescue competition. Fifty winning teams from the preliminary competitions of the nine Johanniter regional associations and two guest teams competed against each other in a passionate, fair competition to determine Germany’s best rescuers.
Review
Volker Bescht, President of Johanniter-Unfall-Hilfe (JUH), sums up Johanniter Day: ‘Over the past two days, we have experienced a great team spirit and fair cooperation in the green heart of Germany. Erfurt was a great host. We would like to thank all the helpers and participants who contributed to making this Johanniter Day an unforgettable experience.’
Patronage
Mario Voigt, Minister President of the Free State of Thuringia, was the patron of the nationwide Johanniter Day 2025 in Erfurt. As Minister President and patron, he emphasises the importance of Johanniter-Unfall-Hilfe for society as a whole: “Day after day, the Johanniter prove that humanity and practical action can go hand in hand. They provide security and support. Especially in challenging times, it becomes clear how valuable this commitment is to our community.”
The competition
Before the competitions could begin, a traditional prayer service was held. Johanniter regional pastor Anne-Christina Wegner and Dr Klaus-Joachim Ziller, theologian at the federal office of the JUH, led the prayer service together with the participants. Then the competition oath was taken. President Bescht then opened the competitions.
(Photo: Tino Sieland/JUH)
In addition to a theory test, all participants completed challenging tasks in the areas of first aid and emergency rescue. They mastered scenarios such as traffic accidents, burn injuries, cardiovascular diseases and wound care. All scenarios were convincingly presented by professional actors. 130 referees evaluated the performances.
The Johanniter national first aid competition takes place every two years. The winning teams from the preliminary competitions in the nine Johanniter regional associations met in Erfurt to compete fairly for the title of ‘Germany’s Best Johanniter Rescuers’. ‘We are delighted that the event went so smoothly overall and that so many Johanniter members from all associations and at all levels contributed to making this Johanniter day unforgettable,’ said Benjamin Kobelt and David Kreuziger from the event planning team, giving a positive assessment.
The winners
In category C, for children aged between six and twelve, the team from the Leipzig/North Saxony regional association won. In category B, for first aiders aged between twelve and 19, the team from the Leipzig/North Saxony regional association also emerged as the winner. The Aachen-Düren-Heinsberg regional association won the competition in category A, for medical assistants aged 16 and over. In the professional category, category S, the regional association of Central Hesse was victorious. In first aid for children for educators, the regional associations of North Brandenburg and West Thuringia were victorious. And in the competition for the best rescue dog teams, the regional association of Lower Saxony Central came out on top.
Overall programme for ‘Johanniter Day’ 2025
The ‘Rescue Olympics’, the centrepiece of Saturday’s event, was accompanied by a varied two-day supporting programme: a ceremony to honour deserving Johanniter members with Mario Voigt, the Minister President of Thuringia, and an extensive training programme. Erfurt’s mayor and representatives of the German Armed Forces, including the Surgeon General of the German Armed Forces, Bruno Most, were impressed by the skills of the Johanniter at the competition stations.
Life-saving emergency measures
Johanniter-Unfall-Hilfe took this year’s First Aid Day as an opportunity to commission a forsa survey. According to the study, many people feel uncertain in an emergency, especially when it comes to life-saving chest compressions. Only 15 percent of those surveyed feel ‘very confident’ in this area, while almost half (46 percent) consider themselves to be somewhat or very uncertain. Around a third of those surveyed feel uncertain about treating a heavily bleeding wound, and a quarter feel the same way about the recovery position.
The first aid competitions are therefore intended to raise awareness of life-saving measures and reduce inhibitions among the population. Although 95 per cent of those surveyed have attended a first aid course, in 25 per cent of cases this was more than 20 years ago. From the perspective of Johanniter-Unfall-Hilfe, there is therefore a need for action in training the population in cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
About the Johanniter-Unfall-Hilfe
With more than 33,000 employees, around 44,000 volunteers and 1.2 million supporting members, Johanniter-Unfall-Hilfe is one of the largest aid organisations in Germany and also a major social economy enterprise. Johanniter is involved in rescue and medical services, disaster relief, care and nursing for the elderly and sick, transport services for people with limited mobility, work with children and young people, hospice work and other charitable services, as well as humanitarian aid abroad.