Because the pressure to perform was too great, Jackie Baumann ended her promising career as a hurdler at the age of 24. Now she is a pacemaker – and feels much more comfortable in her sport.
Jackie Baumann has been fixated on speed for over ten years. As a 400-meter hurdler she was German champion twice, she started at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro at the age of 19 and had a great sporting future in mind. “I do believe that I could have made it to the Olympic final,” says Baumann. But before she had exhausted her possibilities, she announced the end of her career in 2020 – immediately before the German championships in Braunschweig, at the age of 24. This caused a small tremor in specialist circles.