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Massage on the field (here: before extra time at the 2010 World Cup quarter-finals for Paraguay's Paulo Da Silva): »You massage me fit«
Photo: Michael Steele / Getty Images
The photos of legends hang in Klaus Eder's treatment room.
Signed pictures by Andreas Brehme, Oliver Bierhoff and Lothar Matthäus, with warm regards.
This is what Eder, 67, told us on the phone.
He reads out what Boris Becker wrote on a poster: "It's always a pleasure to let you torture me."
Many German sports stars were under the hands of the physiotherapist.
For 30 years Eder looked after the calves of the nation for the German Football Association, and since 1984 he has participated in all the Summer Olympics.
Before their use, he shook the muscles with quick grips.
After their competitions, Eder repeatedly "exhausted" his protégés.
That's what he calls it when he massages, kneads, and rolls her stressed body.
"A massage is a great way to bring the athlete down or stimulate his muscles," he says.
Massages in high-performance sport are very important.
But whether kneading actually brings anything is now very controversial.
A study published in the medical journal "The BMJ" now completely questions the effect of the massages.
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