Sporty entrepreneur

They share a desk and a passion

Lukas Krainz (left) and Mathias Maier founded Vereinsplaner five years ago. The two also share a passion for running.

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Markus Wenzel (2))

Vereinplaner founders share a company, a desk and a passion for sport: to clear their heads, Lukas Krainz and Mathias Maier may well lace up their running shoes in the middle of the working day. They now like to push themselves to their sporting limits during competitions.

They usually have their sports gear with them in the office. "There are times when you just have a blockage. When you go for a run, your head is clear again and you can get back to work," says Mathias Maier.

In 2019, the Bad Wimsbach native founded the software specialist Vereinsplaner with Lukas Krainz. The company, based in the Linz tobacco factory, has grown step by step and moved into new premises this year.

From the Burgenland Extreme to the Danube Trail around Linz: Krainz (l.) and Maier like to push themselves to their limits.

(Bild: zVg (2))

"We want to build a casual, medium-sized company. This is a marathon, not a sprint," emphasizes Krainz. When it comes to sport, the duo also love marathons. During the coronavirus pandemic, Maier even once ran the 42.195 kilometers around the Linz brewery on the Tabakfabrik site. "I heard that there was an Austrian who was preparing for the North Pole Marathon in a cold store - that inspired me," he says.

In the meantime, however, a normal marathon is almost too short for Maier and Krainz - they prefer ultra-distance events. This year, they competed in the Danube Trail around Linz over the 100-kilometre distance, and in the Traunsee mountain marathon they covered 4500 meters of altitude over 63 kilometers. Training for up to 100 kilometers is not unusual.

Good performances by one are an incentive for the other to possibly even outdo the other again: "But if we take part in the same competition, we help each other when one of us has a low. We do the same at work," says Maier, who has set his sights on the Ironman in Klagenfurt next year. In addition to running, there will also be cycling and swimming.