Paralympics: Bayer Leverkusen: The Paralympic power center in Germany

Optimal conditions. Jörg Frischmann likes to use these two words to explain the success of Bayer Leverkusen. “Our athletes train in an environment that offers them optimal conditions,” says the 61-year-old, who has been responsible for Paralympic sports at Bayer for more than 25 years: “We have built up this network over the years.” Of the 143 Of the German athletes represented at the Paralympics, 18 belong to Bayer. No club has sent more active people to Paris. Track and field athletes such as Markus Rehm, Johannes Floors, Léon Schäfer and Irmgard Bensusan come from Leverkusen. But the swimmer Taliso Engel and seven sitting volleyball players are also among them.

In Leverkusen the distances between the training hall, physiotherapy and orthopedic workshop are short. Athletes with and without disabilities benefit from the same structures at Bayer, says Frischmann: “We were already campaigning for inclusion when no one was talking about it.” Bayer employs several full-time coaches, which is rare in Paralympic sports. The roots lie in the post-war period. As early as 1950, the chemical company Bayer offered its disabled employees an opportunity to exercise. Not for medals, but for rehabilitation and health care.

Competitive sports were added in the 80s. Frischmann can trace this development well. He was born with deformities in his hands and feet. As a teenager he tried many sports. He joined athletics and won gold in the shot put at the 1992 Barcelona Paralympics.

After his active career, he wanted to further develop Paralympic sports. He studied at the German Sport University in Cologne and took over the department for disabled sports at Bayer. Frischmann established a network with schools, hospitals and self-help groups. He says: “It is always a challenge to integrate young people into competitive Paralympic sports.”

What does he mean by that? In Paris, Leverkusen’s top athletes will be judged based on achievements and medals. The German Disabled Sports Association and its athletes are far from the top in the medal table. The promotion of talent in Germany depends too much on chance – and on a few bases like in Leverkusen. But perhaps the greatest challenges usually lie before the start of a sporting career.

At the very beginning there are often amputations, suffering and uncertainty: the long jumper Rehm, for example, got caught in a ship’s propeller, and his colleague Schäfer developed bone cancer. The sprinter Floors suffered from pain for years due to a genetic defect. All three first had to internalize that competitive sports were even possible for them. In Leverkusen they found a suitable environment – with barrier-free facilities and funding for sports prostheses.

“But we’re not just interested in medals,” explains Frischmann. “It’s about a lot more.” He regularly receives messages from hospitals and learns about young people who are traumatized after an accident or amputation. He often visits in person and promotes sports. As a distraction, as therapy – or as a Paralympic career opportunity. Bayer Leverkusen also organizes talent days and takes part in sports festivals in the Rhineland. Frischmann also speaks with concerned parents and skeptical teachers. The Paralympics in Paris now serve as an argumentative aid.