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After 11 seasons at Schaffhausen, Nik Tominec took over as head of sports at competitor Kriens-Lucerne. How did the change go?
The Handball Supercup at the end of August. It is the duel between Ligakroesus Kadetten Schaffhausen and the up-and-coming HC Kriens-Luzern, champion against cup winner. The season opener goes to the cadets, Kriens-Lucerne not only loses the game, but also goalie Kévin Bonnefoi, who injured his upper arm. A problem that the sports director has to solve during the game.
Many athletes would wish for such a connection.
This head of sport is called Nik Tominec. Up until a good 2 months before the mentioned Supercup, he was still on the field himself – in the iconic orange cadet dress. In 11 seasons he collected no less than 7 championship titles, 3 cup wins and 7 Supercup triumphs. He scored more than 600 goals in over 300 games. Tominec was nothing less than a role model for the people of Schaffhausen. A hip injury hastened the end of his career.
A flying change. Tominec didn’t need a break from handball: «On the contrary. I was afraid that I would miss the sport after the end of my career. So I jumped at the chance right away. Many athletes would like to have such a connection.” Which can also be interpreted as a good sign: that he has so far not perceived his new task as work because he is having so much fun.
Also on the road as a football pro
So now the second career with the big competitor. It may not please everyone, but it is also a return for Tominec. He started his handball career at Borba Luzern, later he played for Kriens-Lucerne. The 32-year-old also played football in the youth team at FC Luzern (in addition to a season and a half as a professional footballer at Olimpija Ljubljana).
Dimitrij Küttel is full of praise for “his” new sports director. He was Tominec’s teammate for a long time in the cadets, and has been an opponent since 2022 and the move to Kriens. Küttel describes his core competencies in the new job as follows: “He has incredible qualities with people, can connect people. He knows half the world,” and smiles: “He’s married with his cell phone, always on the phone.”
Fire test passed
Of course, his area of responsibility is much broader than he can cover with a mobile phone, Tominec smiles and explains: “From organizing the hall and running training operations to signing new players and monitoring the junior teams”, all under the premise that let the club grow together.
I don’t want us to compare ourselves to the cadets.
You can often find him in the hall. He knows what the team needs: “It can be a hug, a pat on the back. Of course also transfers. We are on the way to professionalization.» The native of Lucerne doesn’t want to look back too much: “I don’t want us to compare ourselves to the cadets. It’s important that we go our own way and slowly grow.”
This path should sooner or later lead to the first championship title in the club’s history. This season there is the opportunity to give the Swiss handball pioneer Andy Schmid the perfect career end. The first step should be taken at the start of the championship on Wednesday, when Suhr Aarau is a guest in the Krauerhalle.
Incidentally, Tominec passed the acid test in the Supercup and found a solution for his injured goalie: Yassine Belkaied, Tunisian national keeper. Tominec describes: “I quickly felt that the failure would probably last longer. Then I contacted 3 or 4 people during the game.” It sounds as if the new sports director Nik Tominec does not need a long start-up period.