Thomas Röhler lived his spear dream until Korona and a back injury entered the picture – in the midst of difficulties, fatherhood brought a valuable perspective to life

Despite his Doha World Cup flop, Röhler himself was convinced that 2020 would be a turn for the better. That’s what it was, but not in a competitive way. In the summer of 2020, Röhler was not seen competing at all for two reasons. The most important of these was the addition of a family in July, the birth of a firstborn son ten months after the World Cup disappointment.

Another reason for the absence was found in the mixed corona pandemic of world travel, which made it difficult to practice, travel and compete. As the organizers of the Tokyo Olympics progressed as spring progressed, Röhler, who was in the midst of a life change, decided to keep his career in the middle of the year and invest in bangs for the 2021 Olympics. It was eventually watered down by a back injury.

– These years have been challenging. The year 2020 was finally very successful in terms of javelin throwing, as the body was allowed to recover from old ailments. But then during the most important period of the training season, at the turn of March-April 2021, problems began. There was a lot of risk-taking in the rehearsals, because once you get a taste of winning, the goal is always to repeat the trick, Röhler says in a telephone interview with Sport.

Röhler was seen with a race tag on his chest only in early June at the German Championships. The race is only nominal in the statistics, as Röhler blew through the game already in the middle of his first throw, where the spear landed in the grass well before the 70-meter line.

– In hindsight, I should have interrupted the season earlier, but the top athletes motivate themselves by being able to overcome the difficulties, Röhler says.

Unlike in the 2020 season, however, Röhler did not see a complete break from his bread in the summer of 2021. He served as a commentator for German Eurosport at the Tokyo Olympics, which rose to headlines after the platform was deceived by competitors. Several top throwers have suffered from the platform, including the overwhelming number one of the season and only the ninth in Tokyo. Johannes Vetter.

Röhler sympathizes with his compatriot, but feels that the conversation about the condition of the track has left the glove and diverted too much attention from the Indian who won the Olympic gold Neeraj Choprasta.

– It is difficult to tell the public about the javelin throw at the level of detail, because the possibility of misunderstandings is high.

– However, I think the debate must be fair. So why just talk about the coating of the flywheel? We have a great story about an Indian hero who has brought our species to the consciousness of over a billion people. There are always other sides to sad things. It doesn’t rule out that John suffered that day, Röhler says.

In the big picture, watching next to the Olympic final was an educational experience for Röhler.

– I can’t sit down and enjoy the javelin throwing as a spectator. It’s not time yet.

Although the image of the spearmen has been painted over the years as crude athletes, for whom pain is not an obstacle but at most a retarder, Röhler admits that the mental Kant has been put to the test as the competition has lengthened.

– As a role model, my job is to show young shooters that injuries are part of the profession. However, it is sometimes difficult to stay positive in front of the media and fans, when waking up in the morning is like an old man, Röhler describes the symptoms caused by a back injury.

In the midst of adversity, the German has drawn positivity not only from family life but also from the highlights of his career.

Gold medals and top throws would not have been possible without healthy years. Röhler has had enough of them, as only a handful of competitions have been missed throughout his adult career. Between 2014 and 2019, he threw an average of 18 races during the season. The numbers are the same as with another successful thrower of the 21st century, a seven-time value medalist Tero in Pitkämäki.

As with his Finnish role model, the role of sport in Röhler’s life is clear.

– When you can come home with a family that supports both joys and sorrows, it is the best thing in the world. It’s great to see my son smiling. Sometimes I might even take him to rehearsals. The child has brought a new perspective to life, says Röhler, 30.

– If I were younger, I would have risked more because of the Tokyo Olympics. Now I’m aiming for the Paris Olympics, and by no means do I want to end my career there.

Röhler says he has fully recovered from his back injury. This is also evidenced by his intention to open the race season as early as 13 May in the Doha Diamond League.

The 2022 season will exceptionally include two value competitions, with the Eugene World Cup, which was postponed by a year due to the pandemic, taking place in July. A month later, European Championship medals will be fought at the German home arena in Munich.

As the 2020 European Championships were completely missed due to the pandemic, Röhler, who won the European Championship gold in 2018, will leave for Munich as the reigning European champion.

– The most important thing is to be able to compete a lot and stay healthy. I’m not talking about the dimensions of the throws, but of course I’m aiming for medals. The biggest goal of the season is in Munich.

– The numbers in the exercises tell you that things are going in the right direction, but the results of the exercises do not tell the whole truth.

Following the Doha Diamond League, Röhler plans to compete in Dessau, Germany on May 25th. If the season starts as planned, the German star wants to compete in the Paavo Nurmi Games in Turku on June 14th.

In that incident, Röhler first crossed 90 meters six years ago. The result 91.28 was a race record until 2020, when compatriot Vetter threw 91.49 in front of the Turku crowd.

Vetter, who ruled the statistics in recent years, is also being starred in the 2022 season, but several injured German shooters are returning to real action with high expectations. Among other things Andreas Hofmann has spoken publicly about its goal of breaking its record of 92.06.

According to Röhler, who threw at 93.90 at his best, too Julian Weber is in good condition on the basis of the first southern camp, which can reach the ghost line of 90 meters. Before moving to Doha, the Germans are finishing their condition at another Turkish camp.

Last season, four of the next ten shooters on the world list were born in 1997. One of them was Oliver Helander. There was only one shooter older than Röhler in the Top 10, born in 1990 and recently fathered in the Czech Republic. Jakub Vadlejch.

– As last season showed, young people are pushing through. We can’t talk about generational change yet, but it’s at the door.

A Belarusian born in 1998 to start this season Aliaksei Katkavets threw his country to a record 87.53. However, there are many opinions on the weight of the result, as Russian and Belarusian athletes have no say in the upcoming summer championships due to Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine.

In an injury-prone species, annual fluctuations are relevant, but in the statistics for the next few years, ventilation has been drastic. For example, half of the top spot in world statistics in 2019 has since ended up on the operating table.

– Every javelin thrower should know that his career can end any day. Everything can end in one workout, Röhler reminds.