Julius Thole was never someone to walk around with his lips pressed together. Sometimes at international beach volleyball tournaments it seemed as if the 2.06 meter long blocker was not just letting his opponents ricochet off their hands, but – even more painfully – with his additional broad grin.
On Monday, Thole didn’t grin at a virtual press conference, at least not at the beginning. His partner Clemens Wickler, the defense expert, sat petrified in front of the laptop. Rounds like this are rare in this sport, before world championships or the Olympic Games they might happen – or when the common path comes to an end. So it was not unlikely that trend-setting would be announced, rather far away from the sporty, the season is over. Thole, 24, then said: “I want to end my career as a high-performance athlete at the end of the year.” That was not to be expected after all.
The path as the number one perspective team towards the Olympics 2024 seemed to be mapped out
The decision also came as a surprise for the German Volleyball Association, it loses its ideal and model duo. The Hamburg Thole had developed with the Starnberg Wickler in the time together since 2018 by far the best German men’s duo, at their home World Cup at Rothenbaum they reached the final in the Hanseatic city in the summer of 2019 in the sold-out stadium, where they the Russians Krasilnikow / Stojanowski were defeated.
Two months later, they also won silver at the World Tour Final in Rome. Despite injuries and dents in shape, Thole and Wickler reached the quarter-finals at the Olympic Games in Tokyo – the Russian world champions were too strong there again. Nevertheless: The path as the number one perspective team towards 2024 in Paris seemed to be mapped out – in the best case as the sporting heirs of the Olympic gold winners Julius Brink / Jonas Reckermann and Laura Ludwig / Kira Walkenhorst.
Thole no longer wants to go this way, he justified his decision on Monday with the fact that he would no longer be able to practice beach volleyball with full devotion for the next three years because of his studies: “I want to intensify and deepen my law studies,” said Thole, who said that The first state examination is ahead of him, “and that is no longer compatible with commitment to sport.”
At the same time he is looking forward to “a life that I can shape more freely, more than studying and attending lectures. Maybe learning a new language, doing a semester abroad, looking into other subjects”. Or play badminton and tennis, as in the past, without great pressure.
He does not end his career: Clemens Wickler will in future form a duo with Nils Ehlers from Berlin.
(Photo: Sean M. Haffey / Getty)
Thole’s decision once again raises the question of how well top sport and studies can be combined in Germany. In a country that has sports aid, sports promotion groups and other means to support the athletes, but in which, especially in less well-lit disciplines, athletes often end their competitive sports careers early. Thole’s case shows that with comparatively complex courses of study, such as law or medicine, there are obviously still barriers to mastering both at the highest level.
Clemens Wickler was on home leave in Starnberg when Thole called him ten days ago
Thole himself did not want to criticize the system on Monday, he praised the work at the federal base in Hamburg, where most of the beach volleyball professionals are gathered, but which has also had to take some criticism in recent years: “I think centralization is very helpful, we do also have a career advisor at the Olympic base. ” Others, such as the women’s duo Karla Borger and Julia Sude, who recently won the world series finals in Sardinia, also work far away at the federal base in Stuttgart with their own staff because they feel better looked after there.
By the way, Clemens Wickler was on home leave in Starnberg when Thole called him ten days ago. “I was surprised, briefly shocked, but then caught myself again very quickly,” says the 26-year-old. Also because his partner explained the decision to him very plausibly. And as it is, the wires between the players, coaches and management glowed afterwards. A new blocker was needed for what is probably the best German defender.
The Berlin Nils Ehlers, 27, should fill this role in the future, 2.10 meters long, fifth in the European Championship, an experienced World Tour player who is still waiting for the breakthrough. Last weekend, Ehlers already trained with Wickler in Hamburg after he had revealed the change to his actual partner. “The domino effect has been set in motion,” says Ehlers, “that’s how it is in our sport.” Thole was the first stone to fall – but in a very self-determined way.