Denise Schindler was a successful Paralympics athlete. In the “Pizza & Pommes” podcast, she discusses Felix Neureuther about how performance and work are related and what the 39-year-old really drives.
At the age of two, Denise Schindler lost a lower leg in a tragic accident with a tram. But instead of being discouraged by this early stroke of fate, she found fulfillment in sports. “My original motivation in cycling was not to be a world champion, but it was just freedom.” Schindler found autonomy on the bike, which was not possible on foot due to her disability.
Schindler’s problem with Germany: “Work is totally negative”
Today, at the age of 39, the para cyclist looks back on her career with five Paralympic medals and three world championship titles and belongs to the Athlete Commission of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC). Without willingness to perform, ambition and work, this would not have been possible.
For Denise Schindler, work is nothing negative, but should create meaning: “I think that’s the biggest catch, especially with us in Germany: work is totally negative.” The 39-year-old is lucky enough to feel her work fulfilling: “Even if it is sometimes exhausting, even if it is sometimes a lot or I don’t even know how I can do it all.” For Schindler, the inner drive is the decisive factor: “If we only talk about it, but don’t get into it, then and don’t help us.”
Felix Neureuther: “I’m a bit of a driven one”
Felix Neureuther shares this attitude: “I am a bit of a driven because I never want to stop.” That seems to be in his cradle. Father Christian Neureuther lives. “He is 76 years old and he continues to develop. And it is really amazing that he has the motivation to still do sports – that helps extremely, even in difficult situations in life.”
Schindler observes a change in social interaction with performance: “I think the younger ones question the meaning: ‘What am I ready to give performance?'” In the older generation, the frustration would outweigh: “They are more likely to say: performance is not worth it.”
Bouquet of flowers and jersey as a reward for World championship
Schindler knows enough that performance, at least Monetary, is not worth it: “I got more than a medal, a bouquet of flowers and a jersey at no world championship where I got a title. It is difficult to pay its rent.” Nevertheless, she is convinced: “Performance is worth it, even in the fulfillment of your life. That you can tell that you can do something, you can do something, you have a drive, you have goals in life.”
