Overview

• The three-part documentary Being Franziska van Almsick is available on the ARD Mediathek from 4 September, with ARD’s linear TV broadcast set for 9 September according to Sport Bild.
• In a new interview, van Almsick says not winning Olympic gold made her feel more human and grounded, and she now considers the outcome acceptable.
• She recounts how an early love for swimming turned into dependence on success under intense public scrutiny, which made the sport emotionally exhausting.
• Van Almsick notes that athletes of her era lacked psychological support and recalls a 1992 scene in Barcelona where a TV reporter searched her bag, which she now views as intrusive.
• She credits having two children with helping her gain perspective and says she holds no grudge over Dagmar Hase’s much-discussed 1994 starting-spot episode, which Hase later called a mistake.