3 August 2024 is a day for the history books. After 32 years, a German wins Olympic gold in the single sculls again. And it's Oliver Zeidler. I watched the final in Paris from my home in Essen. And you could probably hear the stones falling from my heart in France. Oli has done it!
Many of you probably know that as a psychologist I support the national rowing team ("Germany Eight") and also the reigning World Rowing Champion in the single sculls. Now I can also say: the Olympic champion! It's hard to believe.
Oli cried at the award ceremony. I'm so happy that he cried. Showing emotion also means being able to savour the moment. That's what touched me the most.
I had officially gone on holiday for the first week of the Olympics so that I could be there for the German rowers at the Olympic Games. I was in close contact with Oli, we wrote and spoke on the phone. The week was much more intense for me than at other Games, because I realised that I was building up to be a single sculler: I build up a more intensive bond with a single sculler than with an entire team. That's human nature.
That's why I was so excited. I know what Oli has invested and how much he has given up. I give him this gold medal from the bottom of my heart.
When I look back on the week, I realise that the knot was untied by the semi-final with the Olympic record. That's when Oli overcame the trauma of Tokyo 2021. After that, I was sure that anything was possible. The final was a race to perfection. Totally focussed, tactically perfect.
Oliver Zeidler and I recorded three episodes about our collaboration in my podcast "Find the core" - available at https://ac-campus.de/podcast/.