 |
|
| Florian
WELLBROCK |
| Sport |
Open Water Swimming |
| NOC |
Germany
|
| Gender | Men |
| Born | 19 Aug 1997
in Bremen, GER |
| Height | 1.93 m |
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Sport Specific Information |
Why this sport? |
"My beginning in swimming goes back to my childhood years. Back then my parents wanted me to learn to swim." |
General Interest |
Most influential person in career |
His parents. (welt.de, 24 Dec 2019) |
Hero / Idol |
German triathlete Marcus Herbst. (weser-kurier.de, 12 Apr 2019) |
Sport Specific Information |
Name of coach |
Bernd Berkhahn [club, national], GER |
When and where did you begin this sport? |
He began swimming as a child, and decided to pursue the sport seriously when he moved to a sports boarding school in Magdeburg, Germany, in 2014. |
General Interest |
Nicknames |
Flo (weser-kurier.de, 17 Aug 2019) |
Milestones |
At the 2019 World Championships in Gwangju, Republic of Korea, he became the first swimmer from any nation to win a gold medal at a single edition of the world championships in both the pool and open water swimming. He won gold in the 10km open water swim and later won the 1500m event in the pool in Gwangju. (SportsDeskOnline, 12 Feb 2020) |
Further Personal Information |
Residence |
Magdeburg, GER |
Sport Specific Information |
Club / Team |
SC Magdeburg : Germany |
Further Personal Information |
Occupation |
Athlete |
Languages |
English, German |
General Interest |
Other information |
DEALING WITH DISAPPOINTMENT
He won gold in the 10km open water event at the 2019 World Championships in Gwangju, Republic of Korea, and was among the favourites to win the 800m in Gwangju but did not make the final. "It was a kick in the guts and the hardest part of the whole world championships. I tried to process the disappointment by writing things down. When I try to work something out, I don't do it straight away. I write a little, let two or three days pass, read it through and work on it. I deal with it by myself and then save it in my phone." He bounced back from the 800m disappointment to win gold in the 1500m event in Gwangju. "Dealing with the disappointment of the 800m event and then having to get myself motivated for the 1500m was quite a challenge. It was awesome that I could actually win my second gold. The negative experience has definitely made me stronger. I now know that even if I have a bad race, I will be able to pick myself up again and achieve a top performance. It doesn't knock me over. I also think it would be boring to just win medal after medal, so the setback was good in a way and important for me." (welt.de, 24 Dec 2019)
FAMILY TRAGEDY
When he was a child his sister Franziska died when she hit her head after a family swim. "I was nine years old at that time, and clearly it was a shock to have lost my sister, but I did not really understand it at the time. I just continued on with life." In memory of his sister he has a tattoo with a line from the song 'Feel Free' by Sido below his left shoulder that reads, 'Enjoy your life, you'll be dead longer than you're alive'. (volksstimme.de, 01 Sep 2018) |
Superstitions / Rituals / Beliefs |
He likes to listen to rap music before a competition. (welt.de, 24 Dec 2019) |
Famous relatives |
His wife Sarah Kohler has represented Germany in swimming. She won gold in the mixed open water relay and silver in the pool in the 1500m freestyle at the 2019 World Championships in Gwangju, Republic of Korea, and bronze in the 1500m freestyle at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. (SportsDeskOnline, 21 Oct 2021; fina.org, 08 Oct 2021; Instagram profile, 09 Sep 2021; volksstimme.de, 01 Sep 2018) |
Ambitions |
To win a gold medal at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. (fina.org, 08 Oct 2021) |
Awards and honours |
He was named 2021 Best Male Open Water Swimmer by the International Swimming Federation [FINA]. (fina.org, 17 Dec 2021)
He received the 2021 Male Open Water Swimmer of the Year award from swimming website SwimSwam in its Swammy Awards. (swimswam.com, 05 Jan 2022)
He was named Male Open Water Swimmer of the Year for 2021 by the European Swimming Federation [LEN]. (len.eu, 31 Jan 2022)
In 2021 he was one of three recipients of an honorary sports award at the Goldene Henne [Golden Hen] award ceremony in Leipzig, Germany. (mdr.de, 17 Sep 2021; Instagram profile, 17 Sep 2021)
In October 2021 his name was added to the Sports Walk of Fame in Magdeburg, Germany. (stadtmarketing-magdeburg.de, 20 Oct 2021; Instagram profile, 20 Oct 2021)
He was named male Open Water Swimmer of the Year by Swimming World magazine in 2019 and 2021. (swimmingworldmagazine.com, 02 Nov 2019, 03 Nov 2021)
He was named 2018 Sportsman of the Year in Bremen, Germany. (weser-kurier.de, 12 Apr 2019) |
Further Personal Information |
Family |
Wife Sarah Kohler |
General Interest |
Hobbies |
Listening to music, driving. (welt.de, 24 Dec 2019) |
Olympic Games |
| Rank |
Year |
Venue |
Event |
Result |
| 4 |
2021 |
Tokyo, JPN |
800m Freestyle |
7:42.68 |
| 3 |
2021 |
Tokyo, JPN |
1500m Freestyle |
14:40.91 |
| Heats |
2016 |
Rio de Janeiro, BRA |
1500m Freestyle |
15:23.88 |
World Championships |
| Rank |
Year |
Venue |
Event |
Result |
| 2 |
2024 |
Doha, QAT |
1500m Freestyle |
14:44.61 |
| 10 |
2024 |
Doha, QAT |
800m Freestyle |
7:48.17 |
| Heats |
2023 |
Fukuoka, JPN |
800m Freestyle |
7:45.87 |
| Heats |
2023 |
Fukuoka, JPN |
1500m Freestyle |
15:10.33 |
| 3 |
2022 |
Budapest, HUN |
1500m Freestyle |
14:36.94 |
| 2 |
2022 |
Budapest, HUN |
800m Freestyle |
7:39.63 |
| Heats |
2019 |
Gwangju, KOR |
800m Freestyle |
7:53.75 |
| 1 |
2019 |
Gwangju, KOR |
1500m Freestyle |
14:36.54 |
| 7 |
2017 |
Budapest, HUN |
800m Freestyle |
7:52.27 |
| Heats |
2017 |
Budapest, HUN |
1500m Freestyle |
15:07.43 |
World Championships Short Course |
| Rank |
Year |
Venue |
Event |
Result |
| 1 |
2021 |
Abu Dhabi, UAE |
1500m Freestyle |
14:06.88 |
| 17 |
2016 |
Windsor, ON, CAN |
1500m Freestyle |
14:52.00 |
| Heats |
2016 |
Windsor, ON, CAN |
400m Freestyle |
3:47.30 |
European Championships |
| Rank |
Year |
Venue |
Event |
Result |
| 5 |
2022 |
Rome, ITA |
1500m Freestyle |
15:02.51 |
| 1 |
2018 |
Glasgow, SCO |
1500m Freestyle |
14:36.15 |
| 3 |
2018 |
Glasgow, SCO |
800m Freestyle |
7:45.60 |
European Championships Short Course |
| Rank |
Year |
Venue |
Event |
Result |
| 1 |
2021 |
Kazan, RUS |
1500m Freestyle |
14:09.88 |
| 2 |
2021 |
Kazan, RUS |
800m Freestyle |
7:27.99 |
| Heats |
2021 |
Kazan, RUS |
400m Freestyle |
3:41.09 |
| Heats |
2017 |
Copenhagen, DEN |
1500m Freestyle |
14:41.18 |
| Heats |
2017 |
Copenhagen, DEN |
400m Freestyle |
3:44.41 |
| Heats |
2015 |
Netanya, ISR |
1500m Freestyle |
15:02.61 |
World Cup |
| Rank |
Year |
Venue |
Event |
Result |
| 1 |
2022 |
Berlin, GER |
1500m Freestyle |
14:25.41 |
| 25 |
2021 |
|
Overall Ranking |
|
| 1 |
2021 |
Berlin, GER |
1500m Freestyle |
14:35.23 |
| 4 |
2021 |
Berlin, GER |
400m Freestyle |
3:42.22 |
| 6 |
2021 |
Budapest, HUN |
400m Freestyle |
3:45.94 |
| 1 |
2021 |
Budapest, HUN |
1500m Freestyle |
14:42.70 |
| 2 |
2019 |
Berlin, GER |
400m Freestyle |
3:48.98 |
| 1 |
2019 |
Berlin, GER |
1500m Freestyle |
15:10.82 |
| 1 |
2019 |
Budapest, HUN |
1500m Freestyle |
14:57.83 |
| 4 |
2019 |
Budapest, HUN |
400m Freestyle |
3:51.33 |
| 4 |
2017 |
Berlin, GER |
1500m Freestyle |
14:33.25 |
| 1 |
2016 |
Berlin, GER |
1500m Freestyle |
14:35.79 |
World Championships |
| Rank |
Year |
Venue |
Event |
Result |
| 29 |
2024 |
Doha, QAT |
10km |
1:49:59.0 |
| 9 |
2024 |
Doha, QAT |
5km |
51:36.7 |
| 1 |
2023 |
Fukuoka, JPN |
5km |
53:58.0 |
| 1 |
2023 |
Fukuoka, JPN |
10km |
1:50:40.3 |
| 3 |
2022 |
Budapest, HUN |
10km |
1:51:11.2 |
| 1 |
2022 |
Budapest, HUN |
5km |
52:48.8 |
| 1 |
2022 |
Budapest, HUN |
6km - Team Relay |
|
| 1 |
2019 |
Gwangju, KOR |
10km |
1:47:55.9 |
| 5 |
2015 |
Kazan, RUS |
5km |
55:20.6 |
European Championships |
| Rank |
Year |
Venue |
Event |
Result |
| 9 |
2021 |
Budakalász, HUN |
5km |
55:50.5 |
| 3 |
2021 |
Budakalász, HUN |
10km |
1:51:42.0 |
| 2 |
2021 |
Budakalász, HUN |
5km - Team Relay |
54:18.0 |
| |
2018 |
Glasgow, SCO |
25km |
DNF |
| 2 |
2018 |
Glasgow, SCO |
5km - Team Relay |
52:35.6 |
World Aquatics Open Water Swimming World Cup |
| Rank |
Year |
Venue |
Event |
Result |
| 9 |
2023 |
|
10km |
|
| 20 |
2023 |
Funchal, POR |
10km |
1:45:31.2 |
| 1 |
2021 |
Abu Dhabi, UAE |
10km |
1:48:09.4 |
| |
2020 |
|
10km |
|
| 3 |
2020 |
Doha, QAT |
10km |
1:49:59.3 |
| 17 |
2019 |
|
10km |
|
| 1 |
2019 |
Doha, QAT |
10km |
1:52:21.6 |
| 15 |
2018 |
|
10km |
|
| 1 |
2018 |
Abu Dhabi, UAE |
10km |
1:53:00.9 |
| 1 |
2018 |
Balatonfüred, HUN |
10km |
1:55:40.20 |
| |
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