In 2024, the Bremen native dipped after the Paris Olympic debacle and thought of quitting. In the warm sea in front of Singapore, the deeply sunken swimming star now appears.
After six World Cup titles inside and outside, Wellbrock swum far behind the medals in Paris last summer-and left as a crashed hero without comment.
The thought at the end of the career went through his head, admitted to Wellbrock, who had almost alone pulled German swimming sports out of the crisis at the summer games four years ago in Japan with gold in open water and bronze over 1,500 meters freestyle.
“I was out of the training for almost two months. I personally really needed and enjoyed the time for myself to be able to live normally,” said the Tokyo Olympic champion that he “had the day passed without any fixed dates”. During the break, however, he decided to continue and tackle the games in Los Angeles in 2028.
Wellbrock starts as a fellow favorite over 1,500 meters
The now 27-year-old, who swims for SC Magdeburg at the club level, also reinvented himself. “I had a few problems switching off last year,” said Wellbrock, who changed the sports psychologist after Paris. He is “just a little more relaxed, more relaxed. I think that is good.”
The World Cup begins on Wednesday for Wellbrock. At 2 a.m. in the morning, he jumps into the Palawan Beach as a fellow favorite into the over 30 degrees of warm water. He already showed old strength over the Olympic ten kilometers at the first World Cup of the year in Egypt with a superior victory.
In the pool, too, he got back to confidence with strong performances: at the end of the XXL World Cup, he will be the world’s best in two and a half weeks at the end of the XXL World Cup-with new joy. Its newcomers obviously had an effect, which was not hidden from the environment either.
DSV sports director praises Wellbrock
“He is a professional, he has known the business for a long time, he cannot get down,” said DSV sports director Christian Hansmann: “He has a tight program, swims all the distances in the open water and then switches to the pool. I have it on the piece-absolutely.”
Pelvic Olympic champion Lukas Märtens, who replaced him in Paris as Germany’s swimming star, also found in Magdeburg: “He developed well again this year, showed stable, both in training and in competition.” But there are slight doubts. “It is difficult to say,” said Märtens when asked whether Wellbrock would come back: “I’m looking forward to him.”
This topic in the program:
Sportblitz, July 15, 2025, 6:06 p.m.
