Boll on the end of his career: Uncertainty and vacation with Nowitzki

For table tennis star Timo Boll, a journey into the unknown will begin after the end of his long career. I still don't know exactly what will happen after his last game, “but the worry about it is gone,” said the 43-year-old in an interview with Der Spiegel: “I'm even looking forward to it now.”

Germany's most successful table tennis player in history definitely wants to spend time with his good friend Dirk Nowitzki. There will “definitely” be a vacation together, which the basketball icon called for a long time ago: “But I also want to take time to find myself and get my bearings and see: What do I actually have a quality for?”

Boll, who topped the world rankings four times during his career, is also retiring from his club Borussia Düsseldorf after the season. He had already retired from the national team after the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. The Bundesliga final on June 15 in Frankfurt could also be the ultimate final for Boll.

After that, he still has “advertising partnerships that I have to fulfill in the coming years. But I also have free time, time for my family, friends and my hobbies. I also want to see something else professionally, maybe do some internships,” said Boll.

The uncertainty that comes with ending his career has plagued him for a long time. “I was really afraid for a long time that I would miss the moment and never really be able to let go of the sport,” he said.

The feeling that now was the right time had “built up over the past five years”.

Boll was able to motivate himself again for the 2024 Olympics, but: “In the end, I was so limited overall that I knew I wouldn't get back to my old level.” The realization made him “upset and dissatisfied” - and that's also why he made the decision to retire after the season.

Source: SID
Featured image above: Timo Boll (Photo: FIRO/SID)