Silver at the Paralympics in Rio:

Laura Fürst is a student of Mechanical Engineering in Garching

TUMstudinews: You’ve been back from Rio a few weeks now. What are the lasting impressions of the games?

Laura Fürst: The atmosphere at the games was really good. The locals of Rio, the “carriocas” are simply great at cheering – quite different from what we are used to in Germany.

Congratulations on the silver medal – that must have been awesome!

Yes, that was quite off the chain for me. Some of the girls from my team had already won the gold medal in London in 2012. At first, they were a bit disappointed – but it simply wasn’t quite our day when we played the US-team in the finals. They were better than us, right from the beginning, but we managed to catch up during the second half of the game. In the end, however, they really deserved to win.

Did you have free time to go sightseeing in Rio?

We arrived on September 1 already, and we spent two afternoons in the city before the Paralympics started. We only had training once a day, and that was a welcome change to keep us from getting too impatient. Otherwise, I didn’t really get to see anything. When the games started, there was no time for sightseeing any more. After the Paralympics, I went on a five-day vacation with my boyfriend. We visited the Iguazu Falls in the middle of the rainforest. It was really nice there – a good opportunity to relax a bit after all the excitement.

What is your impression of the city?

Rio is simply huge – and very diverse. On one side, there are the high-rise buildings, and the colorful favela settlements on the other side. The enormous gap between the rich and the poor is very evident.

Is there a big difference between the support for the regular Olympic Games and the Paralympics?

The medal bonuses were raised this year. In the A-squad, there are differences in the sporting aid – which is especially noticeable in the field of sponsorship. Currently, however, we are getting more and more attention due to the whole inclusion-thing. So a lot is being done right now. Although, in my opinion, the lack of funding is generally a problem of marginal sports. It doesn’t necessarily have something to do with the Paralympics.

You were also able to be granted a special scholarship?

Yes, that’s right. There is a sports-scholarship by the Deutsche Bank, for students from the third semester onwards who are members of the A-squad. The monthly financial support is very important, because there is no time for a side job alongside a course of studies and professional sports.

When did you start playing wheelchair basketball?

When I was I the 11th class at school, I spent a year abroad in Michigan – and I had an accident with a snowmobile. After that, I was in a hospital in Murnau for six months, which is where I was introduced to wheelchair basketball. I had been quite involved in sports before my accident, and it was quite clear to me that I would keep that up. The sport helped me a lot after my accident. You get to know other people who have similar experiences, and it’s a possibility to burn off energy.

When did you enter a professional level?

In 2009, I played my first league match. I was lucky that there was a significant increase in efforts to promote young people in the field of wheelchair basketball at the time, especially for the women. The league-matches are in mixed teams. A U25 women’s national team was established in 2010, and I was part of the team. The first U25 World Championships for women took place in Toronto in 2011. In Germany, the standard of the women’s national team is really very high, so – unfortunately – I didn’t make it into the team for 2012.

Did you train even more?

Following four semesters of basic studies, I went to America again. Thanks to wheelchair basketball, I was granted a partial scholarship and was able to visit Whitewater University in Wisconsin. There, I studied two semesters of “Physical Engineering” and played a lot of basketball in a women’s team. I enjoyed that very much – and I also made a lot of progress in terms of sports.

…and then you managed to become part of the German national team?

Exactly. That was in 2014. Back then, we took second place in the World Cup, and we won the European Championship last year. Rio, however, was my high point so far. That was my dream from the very beginning.

You are a student of Mechanical Engineering at TUM. How do you manage keep up such a challenging course of studies as well as performance sports?

To be honest, Mechanical Engineering is quite helpful with regard to performance sports. There is no attendance obligation, and I can set my own timetable – to make it fit my needs. Thus, I was able to be away for two months during summer. My fellow students pass a lot of material on to me, and I also try to keep up with everything while I’m on the road. That was quite challenging at the beginning.

Did you take it a bit slower before the games?

Yes, of course. I took it a bit slower in the last semester. I only took three exams in order to have more time for training before the Paralympics. I guess it’s easier to manage both sports as well as my course of studies than it would be later on, when I want to focus on professional life.

Do you already have an idea in which direction?

Not quite yet. In any case, I want to do an internship to gain experience. I could also imagine to keep up what I wrote my semester paper about. The topic was increasing the efficiency of truck engines using exhaust gas heat recovery.

And your future plans in the way of sports?

In the summer, I was out and about with the national team for three months in total, which of course takes up a lot of energy as well as all the leisure time. Let’s see how this can go on. After being in Rio, of course, I really do feel I should keep going!

(Interview: Verena Pongratz)

Laura Fürst (25) was born in Munich. Currently, she is in her 3rd Master’s semester of Mechanical Engineering. She earned her Bachelor’s degree at TUM, in the field of Energy and Process Engineering.