Eating disorders are often a taboo subject, even behind the scenes of competitive sports. The aspects of weight and losing weight also accompany the lives of many athletes. Kim Bui and Miriam Neureuther want to break the wall of silence.
Former world-class gymnast Kim Bui and biathlon world champion Miriam Neureuther have experienced for themselves how constant pressure to improve performance or to conform to an aesthetic norm can influence and change eating habits.
Both have different experiences. Miriam Neureuther lost a lot of weight for the sport, Kim Bui fell into the vicious circle of bulimia. Together with those affected and experts, Miriam Neureuther and Kim Bui want to break the silence in the BR documentary “Hunger for Gold”, question existing systems, seek ways and solutions out of the vicious circle of eating disorders.
Eating disorders taboo
Eating disorders are the big taboo subject among competitive athletes. Former world-class gymnast Kim Bui and biathlon world champion Miriam Neureuther know only too well what that means.
They starved for gold. You’ve lived through what the “lighter = better” system does to you. And experienced how easily constant pressure to increase performance and to conform to an aesthetic norm leads to the eating disorder.
When sport becomes more important than health
“Sport was my life,” says Miriam Neureuther: “I did everything for him, including losing weight.” She describes: “There was pressure that I had to lose weight in order to be able to run even faster, although my performance was very good back then. As a result, I was very close to my personal weight limit for a short time.”
It was only after a serious injury period, during which competitive sports were unthinkable, that she questioned her eating habits: Do I really want to continue starving for gold and risk my health? Thanks to her environment, she changed course in good time and has now made it a matter of the heart to educate and raise awareness about the topic.
Kim Bui – with therapy out of the vicious circle
Kim Bui was 15 when she choked up food for the first time: “It had to come out, I just couldn’t gain weight.” From then on she vomited several times – every day. A trainer, she says, drove her into the eating disorder at the time, and another trainer saved her years later. When she finds out about Kim’s bulimia, she sends the athlete to therapy and helps her to break the vicious circle.
Performance increase only at the beginning
In the initial phase of weight loss, there is often an increase in performance when the optimum power-load ratio is reached. But at some point the system tips over and the initially positive effects are reversed, and performance deteriorates again.
fatal cycle
A fatal cycle begins, because the dissatisfaction increases the internal and external pressure to perform and more attempts are made to lose weight. The eating disorder can then hardly be stopped – with sometimes dramatic consequences for those affected.
Kim Bui and Miriam Neureuther want to raise public awareness and help young people and athletes not to have to starve for gold in the first place.
Documentary in TV and media library – Bui and Neureuther in focus on sport
The documentation “Hunger for Gold” is already in the ARD media librarywhich is broadcast on TV on March 5th from around 5 p.m. following the winter sports broadcasts on the first.
BR Fernsehen also broadcasts the film – on March 8th from 10 p.m. Kim Bui and Miriam Neureuther are also guests in Blickpunkt Sport on BR Fernsehen on March 5th.
Source: DocTopic 08.03.2023 – 10:00 p.m
