Stepping into the top of the world was too big for canoeist David Schmude

At a young age, David Schmude dreamed of participating in the Olympic Games. But with a little distance the canoeist from Verden had to admit that the leap into the top of the world was a little too big for him.

Verden – If he looks back on his career in canoe racing, then David Schmude from Verden can definitely be proud. Finally, the now 31-year-old former competitive athlete secured silver at the first-ever U23 World Cup in Wellington, Canada in the K2 over 1000 meters. The same applied to the European title fights in Poland with his partner.

But another event was even more important for the man from Verden. Even if there wasn’t a medal there. “Outstanding for me was my first performance in the competitive sport class at the World Cup in Milan. In Italy I reached the B final with the K4 and won it. ”These adult athletes include the multiple Olympic champion Ronald Rauhe, who is aiming for a medal again at his fifth Olympic Games in Tokyo. The great role model during his active time, however, was the Canadian Adam Joseph van Koeverden. At the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, he won both the gold medal over the 500 meters and the silver medal over the 1000 meters. Schmude looking in the rear-view mirror: “I was particularly impressed with the extremely clean paddling technique. I also met him at a preparatory training camp in Florida, where the Canadian national team was also preparing for major events. “

Friends Jakob Zabel and Jan Watzlawick first brought David Schmude to canoeing

The 31-year-old has had many wonderful moments in his career, says the man from Verden. He owes this to his friends from Verden, Jakob Zabel and Jan Watzlawick, who took him to canoe training for the first time in 1999. “It was the two of them that brought me to this sport. We started with indoor training, because circuit training was popular in winter. Only then did it go on the water. And then I got along better and better ”, the man from Allerstädter remembers his beginnings. During the training sessions he met, among others, Volker Watzlawick, who, as a very experienced canoeist, had the youngsters under his wing. Schmude: “Volker has already shaped me. But my other coaches, such as the national coaches Arndt Harnisch and Stefan Ulm, also contributed to the later success. Everyone had their own style and gave me something different. “

In the U23 the Verden was still in the top of the world

After all, his path led the man from Verden to the world’s top U23 canoeists. “But the step into the absolute top of the world was then too big,” admits the Verden honestly. His international path began in the U16 national team. Among other things, he took part in the Olympic Hope Games, where the youngsters were able to gain their first international experience. After he had won the bronze medal over the 1000 meters in the single at the German Championships in 2015, it got more and more difficult the following year. Therefore he devoted himself more to his old hobby horse psychology at the Ruhr University in Bochum when he paddled for the local KG (canoe community). David Schmude is currently doing a three-year training as a psychological psychotherapist at the Hannover Medical School. In the first year he worked in psychiatry and in the following two years in the psychological outpatient department, where the patients mostly come once a week. A big advantage is that he receives money in the three years of training and has the opportunity to do research at the university clinic. “I don’t yet know where my path will lead me. I either work in a clinic or open my own practice, ”the 31-year-old explains. The man from Verden has not regretted the decision that he finally ended his sporting career four years ago.