The first 1000 meters - halfway

My pulse rises to a maximum of 200 beats per minute - my lungs are burning. The first lactate pains set in. It feels like thousands of needles are stabbing into my muscles from the inside with every stroke. The voice trying to tempt me to give in to the pain gets louder and louder inside me. I have to block it out - drive the boat towards the finish line stroke by stroke - mercilessly and without thinking too much. Focus on the moment, on my breath. 70% leg work, 20% torso work, 10% left for the arms. The end is approaching and the stroke rate now increases from just over 30 to almost 40 strokes per minute. Then, suddenly . . .

The search for the perfect stroke . ..

. . . it is endless. It drove me on. And today I can admit that I was almost obsessed with it. The interplay of endurance, strength, technique and mental skills is unique for me and is what fascinates me about this sport: Waiting in the starting blocks for the "attention - go", the tension that surrounded me, knowing all the pain I was about to put myself in. The curiosity about how well I would be able to execute my race plan from the first to the last stroke.

And then, just before the start, the great gratitude of being able to show what I had worked hard for every day, with a lot of passion and without compromise. The road to the top was challenging. It would not have been possible without courage, commitment and passion. Nor without trust in myself and the confidence that I could overcome all the ups and downs. As in sport, so now in my new job as Impact Leader.