World champion, Olympic champion, face of German athletics - but the work of long jump ace Malaika Mihambo goes far beyond the sport.
In an interview with Merkur, the 29-year-old talks about her social commitment.
Malaika Mihambo, you went in search of your own roots before your own time. During a trip to Peru you also dealt with the culture of the Incas. Is it important to you to constantly broaden your own horizons?
Yes, that has always been important to me.
Regardless of travel, that has always been in me.
I started getting interested and involved at an early age.
When I was at school, I was already in a human rights club in high school.
At that time I was working intensively on the Millennium Development Goals.
This also increased my awareness of the situation of others.
Empathy, putting yourself in other people's shoes, plays an important role for me.
Would you say that there is a source for your commitment?
I myself come from a family that didn't always have that much money.
That's why I know the perspective and what it's like to grow up like that.
That has never been lost.
I don't forget things that once touched me.
That also encouraged me to study political science.
I want to get involved and make my contribution.
Through sport I have achieved so many beautiful things and experienced so many beautiful things.
I had the feeling early on that success is only really fun if you feel connected to people.
It all shaped me and made me the person I am today.
That's why it's important to me to stand up for others and give something back.
A win alone doesn't fill me that deeply.
I want to share the success and do good on my way to success.
How did the idea of the sports online program come about during the pandemic?
In 2019, at my former elementary school, together with Starkmacher e.
V. offered a sports course.
I really enjoyed making contact with the children and learning new things.
I was always fascinated by what goes on in children's heads (laughs).
And above all how to strengthen children.
During the Corona pandemic I wanted to continue to be there for the group, so we offered the course digitally.
I got a lot of positive feedback.
We've received messages from families who have gathered together in front of the screen and joined in the sports program at Malaika's Heart Leap.
Sport plays an important role, but it is not everything.
It should not only be a sports program, but also educationally valuable.
We have engaged in meditation, in natural sciences, the imagination should be stimulated.
After the online course I founded the association "Malaikas Herzsprung".
As a result of the pandemic, many children have left sports clubs.
My association is committed to ensuring that they can return and that money does not fail them.
We take on contributions and want to empower the children to get to know their own limits and to connect socially.
Life in a sports club is very formative, and that was also the case for me.
Do you also have the feeling that the pandemic has increased tensions and that these are also being perceived more strongly through social media?
Definitive.
Empathy and tolerance make a society strong.
Nobody must be forgotten.
Everyone should be tolerated and accepted for who they are.
People must be able to express themselves freely.
In times of the pandemic, you could see that society was a lot more divided than was previously obvious.
Hate comments on social media show things that I think were already on people's minds beforehand.
So we just went from a covert level to a more obvious level.
I think these basic tendencies were already there in the past.
How do you personally deal with negative comments?
I am fortunate that I almost exclusively have positive comments under my posts.
I am very happy about it.
If something is posted about me on other sites, there is of course also the full spectrum in the comment area.
Most of the time I don't read it and I don't take it to heart.
If I read something, I prepare myself for the fact that there can also be unpleasant comments.
Unfortunately, this is currently the norm on social media.
The stadiums are often the loudest when you're on screen. You could also see that in Munich. How pleased are you with this appreciation from the ranks?
That's always something special.
I had never experienced such an atmosphere as in Munich before.
It's nice to know that people see you for who you are.
And not just as an athlete.
Sport is an important part of my life, but I am more than that. There are many extraordinary sporting achievements.
I'm just happy that I'm also getting positive feedback for my personality.
My complexity is perceived, which makes you feel even more connected to people.
Check out this post on Instagram
A post shared by Malaika Mihambo (@mali.mihambo)
There is also the musician Malaika Mihambo, who plays Franz Schubert's waltz of longing on the piano. Or make music together with trainer Ulli Knapp.
When it comes to music, you can always let yourself go and get into the moment.
It's a good place to switch off, gather strength and process things.
After that I can usually go back to the start more freely and devote myself to the next things.
Music is a great balance to exercise.
So can we look forward to the duet soon - Malaika Mihambo on the piano and Ulli Knapp on the guitar?
(laughs).
I think this will take a little longer.
We just enjoy the time and the fun we have with the music.
You have described the IOC's recommendation for the return of Russian athletes and the shifting of a decision to the associations as a "fiasco". The question of whether sport and politics can be separated also flares up again. How do you see it?
I firmly believe that you can't separate them.
Everything that happens in public is also political at the same time.
Every decision, every problem inevitably raises the question of how it will affect society.
What does it mean politically, what does it mean economically, what does it mean socially?
Therefore, sport must also regularly confess which moral values it represents.
In my opinion, sport and politics cannot be separated.
Finally, a brief preview of the outdoor season. You missed out on the title at the European Indoor Championships in Istanbul. Does that make you even more motivated to start the summer?
I think it's also good if you don't always get what you want.
It's not always all a piece of cake.
You have to work hard for it and always keep the bite to get everything out again.
And take a running start again to jump even further than you have done so far.
Interview: Nico Marius Schmitz