Decathlete with a big dream
World Cup star Neugebauer starts Olympic attack in the “living room”
March 26, 2024, 6:02 p.m
He is the king of the German all-around athletes, Leo Neugebauer improves the German records. But things are just getting started for the 23-year-old. The dream of an Olympic medal starts in his adopted hometown.
For Leo Neugebauer, his big Olympic dream begins in his own “living room”. In the Mike Myers Stadium in Austin, the athletics hopeful works every day for the medal in Paris; here Neugebauer knows every starting block, every take-off board, every ball. And here Neugebauer is finally gaining momentum for the Olympics.
“The competition will take place on my home ground, I like that a lot. There will be a lot of spectators there,” said Neugebauer before his first decathlon of the year at the Texas Relays: “So I’m really looking forward to it, I have to say. We have “We were very well prepared and I feel absolutely great.”
Just two weeks ago, the 23-year-old showed what is possible when Neugebauer is at his best. With 6,347 points, he broke Frank Busemann’s old German indoor record in the heptathlon, meaning Neugebauer now holds both German records in the all-around. But the college student wants more – and ideally wants to deliver in Paris on August 2nd and 3rd.
Olympic medal instead of World Cup?
“For me, the Olympics are above all else,” said Neugebauer, “the biggest stage of all because the best people from all over the world come together there. And it only takes place every four years, so you don’t get the opportunity to take part there very often. ” And Neugebauer wants to show “what I can do” in his Olympic debut. Neugebauer hopes to make up for what he missed when he finished fifth in the World Championships in Budapest in Paris: “My dream would be to win a medal there. That would be very, very cool.” He became a star at the World Championships in Hungary, delighting both the audience in the stadium and those watching on screen with his relaxed and extroverted manner.
With his 8,836 points from last year, Neugebauer has virtually secured his ticket to the Olympics, now it’s time to set the first mark. He doesn’t have an exact score in mind yet; for the business student, the first priority for the business student is to qualify for the college championships at the beginning of June in front of around 20,000 fans. And “that won’t be a big problem,” said Neugebauer.
In about a month he will have his bachelor’s degree in his pocket, and after that, at the latest, all that matters is the Olympics. And perhaps Neugebauer will one day be the first German to crack the magical 9,000 point mark. “I will always try to do my best to achieve my maximum in the ten disciplines,” he said: “It may be that I get 9,000 points, but my focus is just on working on myself and “To make sure I’m always getting a little better.” And that’s why he works in his “living room” every day.