A few days after winning his fourth European Championship title, para-athlete Mathias Mester surprisingly ended his career. The short javelin thrower does not start at the Paralympics in Tokyo for health reasons.
“Health comes first, so I decided to end my career before the games,” said the 34-year-old in a video on Instagram. “So I go with one laughing and one crying eye.”
“I noticed that after winning the European Championship, a huge burden fell off my shoulders. I’ve been chasing an injury since 2010, ”said the seven-time world champion, who had to undergo surgery in the lumbar region eleven years ago for back pain.
But he never got the problems completely under control. Since the beginning of the year, the pain has increased again. “I don’t have the time to get 100 percent fit in time for the games,” said the athlete, who took silver in the shot put at the 2008 Paralympics in Beijing, explaining his decision.
DBS President Beucher: “Absolute figurehead”
The 1.42 m tall athlete was seven times world champion, four times European champion and 22 times German champion. In 2007 Mester was elected Para-Athlete of the Year and in 2008 received the Silver Laurel Leaf. With a lot of self-irony, he presented the »Parantänische Spiele« on social media during the Corona lockdown last year, for which he received the special award in the category »Special Performance« from the German Disabled Sports Association.
“With his sympathetic and humorous manner, he was known far beyond the limits of para sports, an absolute figurehead,” said DBS President Friedhelm Julius Beucher of Mester, who has made a name for himself in recent years with funny appearances on social media .
He will “of course always remain connected to sport,” said Mester: “Basically, I can imagine a lot of things, like the entertainment sector. I enjoy making people laugh with my positive way of doing things. “
