Games in Paris: Klopp supports close friend: “Story must be told”

Jürgen Klopp was not able to shine immediately in his role as lucky charm. His long-time friend Wojtek Czyz had no chance in his opening badminton match at the Paralympics in Paris. “I’ll have to see if he can come again. It wasn’t a successful day for me. Maybe he was the reason,” said Czyz, who has already won four gold medals in athletics for Germany at the Paralympics and now competes for New Zealand.

Successful football coach Klopp took the joking accusation with humor and, despite his current break from professional football, showed his well-known motivational skills. “Wait and see. That was just the start of the Paralympics, not the end,” said the 57-year-old. “It’s great to be here, I enjoyed all seven points from him. No, I was sitting next to his wife Elena and we both had tears in our eyes.” Out of pride. After all, Czyz’s qualification alone can be considered a success.

Amputation after collision in football match

The 44-year-old had to have his left lower leg amputated after a collision during a football match. Shortly before, he had signed his first professional contract at the age of 21. Czyz and Klopp met during rehab and the Polish-born player later played in a charity match for 1. FC Kaiserslautern against FSV Mainz 05, coached by Klopp. “It’s not like we call each other every day now. But we’ve known each other for 23 years,” said Klopp. “It’s funny, we lost touch again until we met again by chance in the port of Lisbon in 2015. Wojtek was playing Frisbee there.”

In Paris, Klopp, visibly refreshed and tanned, also used his free time to make a statement for inclusion. He was already sitting in the stands at the Place de la Concorde at the opening ceremony and watched the show. “It was like a Taylor Swift concert – outstanding. It was just an hour and a half too long for my taste. At the end I thought, the athletes have to go home, they have to sleep to be fit for the competition,” he said.

The story of his friend moves the former coach of Borussia Dortmund and FC Liverpool. “This is the most impressive story I have ever heard in my life. It has to be told and I have done that more than 500 times,” said Klopp. “Nobody I know has done what he has done.”

Circumnavigating the world with his wife

Six months after his amputation, Czyz became German champion in the 100-meter sprint. Two years later, he took part in the 2004 Paralympic Games in Athens and immediately won gold in the long jump and in the 100- and 200-meter sprint races. After four more Paralympic medals, he retired and became involved in the “Sailing4handicaps” project. He and his wife Elena Brambilla set off on a round-the-world trip on a catamaran they had bought themselves, with a prosthetics workshop on board to provide these in developing countries.

During the Corona pandemic, the couple decided to settle in New Zealand. Czyz started playing badminton and realized his dream of returning to the Paralympics and becoming the first player from New Zealand to compete for medals in this sport. “We celebrated the qualification together. There were so many doubters who said that what I was planning was impossible,” said Czyz. “But then Jürgen said: Look Wojtek, we are here. I am here because of you – enjoy it.”

“We need people like Jürgen”

After the opening ceremony – unlike the Olympic Games – did not feature any of the world’s biggest stars, Klopp’s presence is a signal. “We need people like Jürgen to ensure that the focus is on inclusion. This is a great day,” said Czyz with a smile on his face – despite the setback that even Jürgen Klopp could not prevent from the stands.

And Czyz still has two options to advance after the 0:2 defeat in sets against gold candidate Daniel Bethell from Great Britain. Could he count on Klopp’s support again?