BEHRE David

Classification
T62 (IPC, 22 Feb 2020)

Type of Impairment
Limb deficiency (talksport.com, 29 May 2016)

Origin of Impairment
Acquired (talksport.com, 29 May 2016)

Impairment Details
In 2007 he was hit by a train while walking his bike across a railway line. Both of his legs have been amputated below the knee. "I now celebrate my birthday twice, as in a way, I was born twice. On the day of the accident and the day I was born. Even if it might sound strange, I don't want my legs back today. I am happy in my new life on prostheses and satisfied. I enjoy every day and hope the end of my career is still far away." (waz.de, 18 Dec 2013; davidbehre.com, 12 Dec 2013; maz-online.de, 18 Sep 2013; derwesten.de, 24 Dec 2009)

General
UNIVERSAL MIXED RELAY REACTION
He is not a fan of the 4x100m universal mixed relay, which was introduced at the world championships from 2019 as well as the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo. The mixed events replaced relay events that German teams were traditionally successful. "It is clearly a wrong decision. It's a step backwards. It seems like it's not about competitive sports anymore but rather 'having fun together' where performance is secondary. The previous relay events were exciting and attractive and appealed to the audience." (zdf.de, 07 Nov 2019)

RETIREMENT PLAN
He intends to retire from the sport after the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo. "I'm afraid it will be the last Paralympic Games for me. Even in training already my regenerative ability is significantly worse than with a 23 or 24-year-old. I still want to finish my competitive sports career well. And then, if Tokyo is successful, I can look back on a wonderful time in athletics. I very much hope that the Games in Tokyo will be made up for in 2021, and I can say goodbye to the sporting stage in a great setting." (rehacare.de, 04 May 2020; faz.net, 28 Aug 2019; dirkschmidt.com, 11 Jan 2019)

OCCUPATION
He works as motivational speaker and visits hospital patients who have been involved in serious accidents. "I make it clear that they only have to believe in themselves. Usually the ice breaks when the patients see my prostheses. They understand that I know what I'm talking about and that I can empathise with their situation. That motivates them, and I also take something from these encounters and draw a lot of new motivation from it." (magazin.bayer.de, 28 Jun 2019)

AUTHOR
In 2013 he published a book about his life called 'Sprint zuruck ins Leben' [Sprinting Back to Life]. In 2020 he released a second book, 'Innere Starke - Heute beginnt dein Sprint ins Leben' [Inner Strength - Your Sprint into Life]. "With my [2013] book I want to give other people who, like me suffered a terrible stroke of fate, courage. Never give up and do not lose faith in yourself." (Facebook profile, 24 Oct 2020; randomhouse.de, 21 Apr 2013; biderundtanner.ch, 01 Apr 2013)