A new phase of life begins for promoter Rainer Gottwald. The 58-year-old is retiring from boxing and has emigrated to Thailand with his family.
Boxing promoter Rainer Gottwald has said goodbye to boxing in Germany and will be living with his wife in Thailand in future. On December 15, he held his last event at the Karlsruhe Christmas Circus, where the heavyweight duel between his protégé Daniel Dietz and AGON boxer Granit Shala also took place. A few days later, he boarded the plane to Thailand with his family.
“Leaving many traces behind”
“I have left many traces in German boxing,” said the 58-year-old in an interview on Baden-TV. If he wanted to retire at the age of 60, he would have to make a difference now. Among other things, Gottwald, who previously lived in Thailand for 15 years and ran a barter school there, has ideas for a new boxing format on Thai TV.
The former kickboxer also kept an old promise in his new home country. At his civil wedding, Gottwald once promised his wife Tik that he would marry her in Thailand in ten years’ time with all the traditions that go with it. He has now kept this promise.
“The economy in Germany is doing very badly, and you can also see that in sports sponsorship,” Gottwald explained his reasons. “The mood in the country is also bad. I’ve made a big difference here, but there are so few people to thank for it. Now I’m looking forward to making a difference in Thailand again.” In recent years, he has promoted boxers such as Vincent Feigenbutz, Leon Bauer, Daniel Dietz and WBO champion Sarah Bormann.
Star of German reality TV
However, the Herbolzheimer native has not only been active as a boxing promoter in recent years, but has also taken part in numerous television formats. In 2022, Rainer “The Brain” Gottwald won the reality show “Promi Big Brother” on Sat.1. The surprising victory earned him a prize of 100,000 euros.
The charismatic creator has another project close to his heart. The publication of a book is planned for the end of 2025. This should actually have been completed long ago. “But new chapters have been added again and again in recent years,” says Gottwald, who is being accompanied on his emigration to Thailand by the German TV format “Goodbye Deutschland” (Vox). It is quite possible that a few more exciting adventures will be added before the last page of the book about Rainer Gottwald is written.
Text: Frank Schwantes