Meet Leon Glatzer, the first German surfer to qualify for the Olympics

Surfing is one of the 33 sports at the Tokyo Olympics 2020 that will make its debut. About 20 men and 20 women from 18 countries will compete at the beautiful Shidashita Beach in Chiba starting 26th July.

Leon Glatzer is the only surfer from Germany to qualify for the Games. He credits his mental preparation and the motivational wall posters that helped him become the first German surfer to qualify for the Games.

The 24-year-old, who was born in Hawaii and grew up in Costa Rica with German parents, has spent the last five years preparing for the Olympics. And with the occasion nigh, Glatzer is ready.

A huge part of his preparation came from the inspiration he invoked from the motivational words on A4 sheets posted around his room.

Picture courtesy:- Leon Glatzer Instagram account

Of the many posters hung on his walls, the most notable ones had words like "Olympics" , "you can do it" and "remember why you are doing this" etched on them. He would take a look from the time he woke up till the time he went to sleep.

Seeing phrases such as "I will show them who Leon is", "I am unbeatable" and "I will qualify" was a way for him to visualize himself as one of the 20 male surfers fighting for the first Olympic medals to be awarded in the sport – and then to make it happen.

“When I qualified, I put those notes up in my hotel room the day I arrived. I was manifesting it for four years. It was in my mind and my subconscious the whole time”, said Glatzer.

How Glatzer used Sports Psychology to qualify for Tokyo Olympics

Sports psychology came into his life after the International Olympic Committee in 2016 announced that surfing would be included in the Tokyo 2020 program.

“When we heard the news, it changed my life,” said Glatzer, who was four when he first stood on a surfboard.

Glatzer went on to add:

“Suddenly we were treated like Olympic athletes, which we hadn’t really been surfing. In the beginning it was really hard, because we had all these rules and started to train super hard. I guess the Germans know how to create an Olympian. I have a whole new life.”

Leon Glatzer at World Surfing Games

Suddenly he had a team around him, including sports psychologist Martin Walz. The German missed out narrowly on the 2019 qualification for Tokyo 2020. Backed by the German government and Olympic committee, his surfing was taken to new levels.

He was disappointed, had a big breakdown and took five months to overcome it. It was not until the 2021 Surf City El Salvador ISA World Surfing Games in June that the aerial specialist secured his Olympic Games spot.

The qualification came after five days of nervous and fitful sleep. What ultimately helped was Walz throwing away all of his notes. Glatzer said:

“When I qualified I just broke down, it was amazing. All those days of hard work we’d done just got erased.”

The Germans are now going to implement a new strategy with no goals, no Olympics, nothing. With the new goal of making the podium at Tokyo 2020, his room in Japan could yet be decorated with new motivational notes. Glatzer said:

“When I arrive at a new place, whatever I feel I need in that moment, who I feel and what I want, I write that down. We will see how the energy is in Japan.”