The three-time Para-Biathlon World Champion and two-time Paralympic bronze medalist Clara Klug ended her sports career due to depression. At the same time, the 28-year-old campaigned for more psychological sensitivity in para-sports.
“I don’t have the strength to get up – and that’s a direct result of my depression,” said the woman from Munich, who has less than one percent visual acuity due to progressive blindness, in a statement from the German Disabled Sports Association (DBS).
Because of several falls, she missed a World Cup. Because she fractured her shoulder joint on a downhill run in Östersund in January, she also missed the Paralympics in Beijing in March. Klug couldn’t take it and now drew a line.
With her trainer and guide Martin Härtl, the athlete from PSV Munich won double bronze at the 2018 Paralympics in Pyeongchang and three gold medals in biathlon, plus three silver medals and two bronze medals in biathlon and cross-country skiing. But the successes were more of a burden than pleasure. “I can’t remember any competition that I was really happy with. I always thought: Actually, I was just lucky. And now I have to prove all the more that I deserved it all,” said Klug.
Corona pandemic exacerbated the situation
She had previously suffered from mental problems due to the creeping blindness, which broke out again and got worse during the corona pandemic. She had panic attacks and felt listless. The nearer the Paralympics in Beijing, the worse the depression got. When she missed her big goal due to injury, she isolated herself and now pulled the emergency brake.
She did not find offers of help from the team environment to be tangible and targeted enough. “If you have depression, the inhibition threshold to seek help is very high,” said Klug. Many people have been overwhelmed with their situation in recent years.
She is now campaigning for more attention to psychological challenges in para-sports. “We live 24/7 with our limitations. This is often overlooked in the sports world. Our mental stress is even higher than that in competitive Olympic sports,” said Klug, who is being treated again for her depression. As a computer linguist at the Bavarian State Criminal Police Office, she is now looking for a new challenge.