Heinrich Popow
Heinrich Popov at the Paralympics 2012
Heinrich Popov (* July 14, 1983 in Abaj, Kazakh SSR, Soviet Union, now Kazakhstan) is a successful German sprinter. He won at the Paralympics 2012 in London gold in the 100 meters. He is also the reigning world and European champion over 100 meters. Overall, he won 27 medals at the Summer Paralympic Games, World and European Championships.
Disciplines
Heinrich Popov is a specialist in the sprint over 100 meters, the supreme discipline of athletics. He also starts about 200 meters, the long jump and the 4 x 400 - meter relay.
Sporting successes
Heinrich Popov began his competitive sports career in 2001 with TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen. The starting point was an invitation to Athletic Training at Bayer 04, convinced the Popov with very good terms. Today he trains under coach Karl -Heinz Düe together with the seven fighters around the Olympian Jennifer Oeser. At the World Athletics Championships in Lille in 2002 Heinrich Popov won bronze in the long jump and thus established itself among the world leaders. In his first Paralympics in Athens in 2004 he won the 100 and 200 meters and the long jump three bronze medals. Popov increased its performance in the 100 meters at the Paralympic Games in Beijing in 2008 and won with a time of 12.98 s the silver medal. At the Paralympics in London in 2012 Heinrich Popov finally won gold in the 100 meters. In the run- Popov had declared a victory over the 100 meters as his athletic goal. In the Olympic Stadium, he sat down in 12.40 s against Australian Scott Reardon and his German teammate Wojtek Czyz through. When integrative athletics sports festival of Bayer Leverkusen in July 2013 presented the Popov 17 years old world record in the 100 meters at permissible tailwind of 1.2 meters / second in 12.11 seconds a. He improved the old record of Earle Connor by three hundredths of a second.
Childhood and career
At the age of seven years Henry Popov came with his family from Kazakhstan to Germany. He grew up in Hachenburg (Westerwald ). At age nine, doctors amputated his left leg up to the thigh ( knee disarticulation ) as a result of Ewing 's sarcoma in the left calf. In interviews emphasized the Athlete, that the amputation of his parents was more difficult than for himself His biggest concern was that time was that he could no longer play football before. Heinrich Popov describes himself as a sports fan. After his amputation, he tried out various sports until he came to athletics in 2001. Since then he starts 04 Leverkusen TSV Bayer. Heinrich Popov works part-time as an IT system administrator at Bayer 04 Leverkusen Fußball GmbH.
Youth development
In addition to his athletic career Heinrich Popov does motivation and youth development. In hospitals he visited patients and motivates them to sports after amputation. In his club TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen, he is a mentor for several young athletes and gives them tips for their sports career. In order to reach young athletics talents Popov relies heavily on social media.
Popularity and positioning
On Facebook Heinrich Popov is one of the most famous German athletes. The number of fans is growing steadily. With its clear statements he was " probably the most popular Paralympier Germany". Frequently quoted by the media, Heinrich Popov became a sought-after voice of Paralympic sports. Overall Popov calls for better promotion of the Paralympic Sport for All. The Leverkusen calls for " respect and appreciation " for Paralympic athletes; at the same time it requires a professionalisation of sport. In the discussion about higher premiums for Paralympic athletes Popov defended the lower compared to Olympic winners premiums. He explained his statements with the weaker competition in the Paralympics. Popov also spoke out for the separation of the Olympics and Paralympics because the Paralympics in an amalgamated company would be too much in the shadow of the Olympics. In January 2014 Henry Popov was presented as one of eight testimonials of the National Anti -Doping Agency Germany. Under the slogan " give everything, take nothing," he advocates a clean sport. In addition to Henry Popov sportsmen like Vladimir Klitschko, Anni Friesinger and Tobias Angerer committed to the campaign.
Nominations and awards
He was awarded as part of the Junior Sportsman of the Year with the special prize Disabled Sports 2002. For his medals at the Paralympics Heinrich Popov was repeatedly honored with the Silver Laurel Leaf. This award is awarded by the President of the Federal Republic of Germany. In November 2012 Henry Popov honored for his success in London one more time. In 2011 he was one of the most promising candidates for election to the disabled athlete of the year. After his success at the Paralympics in London 2012 Popov was again nominated for this award, but won the table tennis player Jochen Wollmert.