The German favorite’s gold dream ends in the stable side position
Disappointed: Oliver Zeidler
Source: dpa / Jan Woitas
Oliver Zeidler was the big gold candidate in the German team. In his semifinals, the rower experiences the perils of wind and water and breaks in on the last few meters. After crossing the finish line, he remains motionless.
Sfive competitors had long since fled the heat and disappeared into the shade of the boathouse. Oliver Zeidler, however, was not even able to stand up at all. After his sensational elimination in the semifinals, his body functions went on strike. Physically and mentally.
The elimination of one of the greatest hopes for gold in the entire German Olympic team caused a shock. With Team Germany. In the rowing association. But above all with Zeidler himself. The result had shrunk the two-meter giant to a heap of misery. Zeidler crouched in his oar, hardly made a pull and only navigated briefly, at least to keep the course towards the jetty.
When he was washed ashore two minutes later, two supervisors helped him to get ashore. The model athlete rolled out of the boat with the last bit of strength and after a brief observation was brought directly into the stable side position. Tragic images at the Sea Forest Waterway, where the 25-year-old’s gold was scheduled for Friday morning.
Zeidler stumbled towards the boathouse on wet socks
Now he was lying there, lost and beaten. About the competition, the conditions and, ultimately, his own body. Clapping a wet towel around his neck, he carefully straightened up seven minutes after crossing the finish line, sat cross-legged, only to lie down shortly afterwards.
Two more minutes later he tried again, this time even getting upright and stumbling on wet socks in the direction of the boathouse. A quiet farewell to Tokyo that was hardly thought possible.
“He’s dejected, he has worked to the full and is now flat. For him a dream has broken and the disappointment is very big, ”said his father and trainer Heino Zeidler, describing a mixture of physical and mental problems that caused the pitiful state in the finish area.
On the other hand, external factors were primarily responsible for the sporting results of the outstanding rower of the past few years. “Today we weren’t as good as we used to be at regattas. The conditions were very extreme, ”said Zeidler senior. Strong wind and waves had made life difficult for the rowers. The conditions were tough, but not unfair.
European champion Zeidler, who started as a swimmer four years ago, simply lacked experience. “He loves shallow water, no waves, and a slight pushing wind. Those are his strengths, he gets along wonderfully. The wind was the most extreme opponent, “said the coach and looked to the future:” You have to think about how you can get better. “
Zeidler also got into mental games about the end of his activity. “Now let’s take a rest and then we’ll see how things go from here. Is this father-son going on? It’s always a burden, because I do everything on a voluntary basis, ”said the policeman. The officer is only released from his job until August 30th. “You can’t do world-class performances on the side or on a voluntary basis.”
Zeidler and Zeidler want to sit down and analyze the past few years. “In the end, a journey has come to an end. We have achieved a very high level of performance in recent years and maybe sometimes performed above our means, ”said the 49-year-old fourth place in the 1994 World Cup. His son is only 25, others would only become Olympic champion when they were 36. Oliver Zeidler’s grandfather Hans-Johann Färber became Olympic champion in 1972 at the age of 25. But the son, said Zeidler, has at least until Paris.
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