2023-10-04 14:47:32
Rehab instead of a plate!
Handball national goalkeeper Andreas Wolff (32) is currently in rehab following a herniated disc. His last game for Germany was more than five months ago and the home European Championship in Germany (from January 10th) is coming up. SPORT BILD spoke to Wolff.
SPORT BILD: Mr. Wolff, when did you first notice that something was wrong with your back?
Andreas Wolff: “When we were in Veszprem with Kielce in August. After the flight I mightn’t sit down or lie down. I wrote to my physio because I thought I had a neck strain. After the treatment, I took a painkiller, trained and played on Thursday (August 24th; ed.). On Friday (August 25th) we had a friendly once morest Tatabánya, and it was already planned that I wouldn’t play. In the evening I was treated once more. And then it started. I sat down with a towel on my neck and put my legs up. I mightn’t sit on the bed, it was too soft. I mightn’t lie down either. Sunday morning I wrote to the physio and said I needed a doctor’s appointment. Then an MRI on Monday and the diagnosis came on Tuesday.”
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SPORT BILD: What is the diagnosis?
Wolff: “A slipped disc at the top of the cervical spine between C6 and C7. It radiates into the shoulder. For a while, when I woke up in the morning, I had real pain in my forearm. When I got up, I mightn’t move at all. When I sat down it hurt. That’s still the symptom.”
SPORT BILD: What was the first step of treatment?
Wolff: “I received two cortisone injections. Maybe get a third one. The first two worked well, and since then I have been much more pain-free.”
SPORT BILD: How limited were you?
Wolff: “Before the first injection, I mightn’t lie down on the doctor’s couch. That hurt so much. After the injection I was at least able to lie down and get some sleep at night. At some point I also felt sore. I’m not usually a back sleeper. Because I only slept on my back with this neck pillow the whole time, it eventually started to pull on my lower back. But that was at least a step forward following the first injection. Since the second injection I’ve been completely off the painkillers. I need 10 to 30 minutes in the morning to get my body going. I still notice when I turn my upper body that there is still a bit of a pull. But overall it’s okay.”
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SPORT BILD: What movements are you not allowed to make?
Wolff: “I’m not allowed to lift anything at the moment. For example, lifting our large dogs into the car at home – that’s not possible. If I’m walking with my girlfriend and someone comes towards us with a dog, I have to tell her, please take the dogs. In rehab we do a little bit for the biceps. But everything is just on the incline bench, so I have no leverage and no pressure on the intervertebral disc.”
SPORT BILD: You are not doing the rehab at your Polish club Kielce, but in the area around Rhein-Neckar Löwen and TSG Hoffenheim. Why?
Wolff: “Thanks to Kevin (Wolff’s media advisor Kevin Gerwin, who is also the Lions’ arena spokesman; editor) it happened. When I was diagnosed, we wrote. He immediately offered to ask here whether rehab would be possible. Everyone involved, Sascha Pander (Physio der Löwen; editor) and Dr. Stephan Maibaum (Lion team doctor; editor), immediately agreed to help me. In Kielce they agreed to this. It all fits perfectly. Plus, my girlfriend lives nearby.”
In a good mood in rehab: Andreas Wolff
Photo: GES/Markus Gilliar
SPORT BILD: What happens next?
Wolff: “There will be a check-up MRI in mid-October. Then it will be decided what the further plan is. More towards the handball field or further into the weight room. I really hope to be on the handball field.”
SPORT BILD: The European Championships and the Olympics are coming up in 2024. Does this put you under additional pressure?
Wolff: “Of course I want to do it. Basically, I want to get fit and pain-free and play handball once more and do my job. So being able to live my life once more. I worked towards it because people are counting on me too. But it’s nothing that puts me under pressure now. It’s still a long way off, I’ll be able to do it once more by then.”
SPORT BILD: Do you have a time in mind for your return?
Wolff: “So my dream is that someone will now say to me: “Wow, everything feels stable. It all went so wonderfully. You can go back home right now and play in Kielce once more next week.” Unfortunately, I’ve found that setting your own goals and squeezing yourself into a time frame doesn’t get you anywhere and only leads to disappointment in the end.”
Andreas Wolff (l.) in conversation with SPORT BILD editor Dirk Weitzmann
Photo: GES/Markus Gilliar
SPORT BILD: What does a normal rehab day look like for you?
Wolff: “Completely unspectacular. I usually have my first appointment at around 7 a.m., get up at 6 a.m. and drive here to the lions. At 7 a.m. I have an hour of treatment, then it’s a 30-minute drive over to rehab. And there were three to four hours of rehab, one of which was on the bike.”
SPORT BILD: And what do you do for the rest of the day?
Wolff: “Fortunately, the handball Bundesliga has now split up nicely. Except for Tuesday, there is handball every day on the new streaming channel Dyn (majority owned by Axel Springer SE; editor). That’s just wonderful.”
SPORT BILD: What is Andreas Wolff like as a TV viewer in front of the box?
“I am a bully. I’m not getting personal or anything. But I’m just as annoyed by referee decisions as anyone else. Or I get upset regarding player behavior. As a viewer you are in the predestined position that you would have done everything better…”
SPORT BILD: Who will be German champion?
Wolff: “An interesting question that is very difficult to answer. Overall, I’m traditionally betting on THW Kiel because they have this experience in the championship fight. And at some point they pull themselves together once more and get the thing. The Bundesliga is very difficult this season. Every team at the top has something that speaks for them but also something once morest them.”
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SPORT BILD: When Kielce announced the injury, the question quickly arose as to whether that meant they were out of the European Championship. Was that ever an issue for you?
Wolff: “No, absolutely not. I have come back from every injury sooner than others expected. I trust in the rehab and my body, which is used to training and is used to recovering quickly. And I’m betting that my intervertebral disc will also stick to what we agreed on and that it won’t take forever and that it will know that it has now got a bit of extra vacation in Germany.
SPORT BILD: With what emotions are you looking forward to the home European Championships in January 2024?
Wolff: “With anticipation, of course. I think the hype around this tournament will be huge. And that the association is working a lot to make it a great event. The world record game at the start alone is a special highlight. The tournaments in Germany were always characterized by full halls and a good atmosphere. And that’s exactly what I expect from this tournament once more. Maybe even bigger hype than in 2019 at the home World Cup. The team gives it up. We have a lot of young players. Many players who are keen to represent the national team. And if we show the same playing system as at the last World Cup, then we can also play exciting handball.”
SPORT BILD: In 2019 we made it to the semi-finals. And this time?
Wolff: “It’s difficult to say at the moment because the last international matches were six months ago. There was one unconvincing performance once morest Sweden, two not so great ones once morest Denmark. But we beat Spain once more. The biggest pointer for me was the 2023 World Cup. Fifth place reflects well the level at which we are operating. And that is the threshold to the top teams. On good days we are able to beat them. We are a year more mature as a team and a year more experienced individually.”
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