Johannes "Johnny" Grasser is thirty-one years old, an impressive athlete in many different sports, works as a speaker and coach and has completed a certificate course in cooperation with the DFB while studying for his master's degree in sports. That alone could be admirable, but there is much more to it - because: Johannes is tetraplegic, which means that his extremities are virtually paralyzed due to the consequences of his premature birth. He should actually have uncontrolled muscle contractions due to his excessive muscle tension and not be able to walk at all - but he does it anyway (with support). His credo: it can't be done. In order to be as active as possible, he has been determined to maintain an enormous training workload since childhood. One of his sporting highlights was a jump from a 7.5 m board in a wheelchair. Johnny wanted to set an example that he too can do "normal" things and that there is no reason for society to treat him differently. That's why his big goal is to conquer the Sugarloaf Mountain in Rio - a climb that will take Johnny and his team 15 to 20 hours. Such high sporting achievements also require reliable support for mental endurance, which is why we are happy to support Johnny with our HANS rules.
With his iron will and unbridled optimism, he inspires many others and we also wanted to get to know Johnny and met him (digitally) for an interview:
We've just caught you in the middle of preparing for the Mud Masters, a 16 km obstacle course, which is a great challenge even for athletes without restrictions. How did you prepare for this event?
I have been preparing very intensively for seven months in collaboration with Stuntwerk Köln. The plan is that I alternate between running 0.5 km on my hands and being carried 1.5 km, divided between my six helpers. The whole thing is repeated until we have completed the 16 km. We all have to overcome the obstacles ourselves and together - that will be a huge challenge, but it will also be fun.
That also requires good training planning. I'm sure your sports degree gives you the theoretical know-how for this, or do you prefer to seek external support?
Well, I already have two bachelor's degrees and a master's degree, so the know-how certainly helps me. However, due to my physical disability, I have to keep adapting my training anyway. We've looked at the obstacles and circumstances and tried to adapt the training accordingly; in other words, to train the things that are difficult for me and to think about how we can make it so that the boys can help me. It's very special and we don't have any external help because very few people can put themselves in the shoes of such a special body in order to plan my training accordingly.
With your extreme training workload, it's essential to have enough power for it. What does your diet look like - do you have to pay particular attention to anything?
That's a very good question (laughs). Yes, I actually train for up to four hours a day or more at the moment in preparation for the two projects, namely the Mud Masters and the climbing project in Rio. Nutrition always plays a very important role, especially in the context of my disability. Due to the excessive muscle tension, my basal metabolic rate, i.e. my calorie consumption, is significantly higher at rest and, of course, even higher under stress. To my shame, I have to admit that this is actually the area with the most potential for improvement, as my diet often takes a back seat due to time constraints. I could certainly make sure that I take better care of myself, especially in the context of muscle building and regeneration. I actually still have a lot of room for improvement in this area. Shame on me, although I should know better as a sports scientist (laughs).
...And with such a high physical and mental strain, our HANS is of course the perfect support ;)
In interviews, you have often said that your positive attitude is "due" to your upbringing. When you think about your workshop participants now - is this attitude confirmed? Or is it rather your own achievement to be optimistic?
I would say it's a combination of both, because your upbringing really lays the foundation for how motivated or with what basic attitude you go through life, because your parents are of course very influential. But then at some point it's up to you to motivate yourself and go through life positively. Of course, I also had setbacks where I felt like giving up, but the alternative showed me that giving up is not an option. I then got back up bit by bit, so in that sense it really is a lot of personal effort - but it also has the advantage that once you've done it once, it's easier to do it again. I also try to pass this on to people in my motivational coaching sessions and workshops.
In the current discourse on politically correct language, the term 'disabled' also crops up time and again. This makes many people increasingly cautious when using such terms. What would you suggest instead?
I think disability has a very negative connotation in the German context. Disability sounds like a construction site on the highway - it gets in your way, slows you down, takes time and is annoying. That's why I don't like this word and would rather call it restriction or handicap, because someone who breaks their arm also has a handicap, but it's not called that. In general, however, you shouldn't worry so much about what you can and can't say. I prefer it when people are open about it without fear. At the end of the day, it's also my job to take away people's fear of approaching people with my restriction. Because it's much nicer and you feel much better integrated when people treat you normally.
You are something of an inclusion ambassador. Do you also see a change in the way friends interact with you? Or with people you've only met in the past?
I wouldn't call myself an inclusion ambassador right now (laughs). Unfortunately, as far as Germany is concerned, I have to answer that question in the negative. Even people who have actually known me for a long time still find it very difficult to treat me "normally" because they are afraid that they might do something wrong. There is a subliminal feeling of "if we take Johnny with us, we might have to look after him" because I often have to be pushed in my wheelchair. Many people automatically - and understandably so - associate this "have to" with obligation and it makes it difficult for many people to deal with it in a relaxed way. That's also my biggest criticism: you can do away with stairs and make things barrier-free - that's all well and good, but ultimately you have to start in people's heads. I have the feeling that Germany doesn't really want inclusion to work. It's an embarrassment to create such a term, because you should actually be able to manage it so that you don't even need it, because it's a normal part of life. I hope that this will change in the next few years and maybe I can contribute to this through crazy things like my Mud Masters or my climbing project in Rio, to teach people in a positive and funny - and perhaps also somewhat provocative - way that you don't have to be so scared after all.
In Germany, one in ten people live with a disability, but the vast majority of people have little contact with them and when they do, they tend to react insecurely. How do you experience this?
You often have the feeling that you are seen as mentally stupid because people treat you like a small child. But I prefer it when people ask if they don't know how to deal with me. Have the courage to ask as much and as often as you like, but just treat me and everyone else as normal people. It's also important to me that I can't expect everyone else to change and treat me normally if I don't do anything about it myself. I have often seen wheelchair users react very grumpily and snappishly when they are offered help, perhaps because of bad experiences in the past. But the person asking doesn't know that. If I answer like that, the person will not ask another wheelchair user the next time, but if I say "no thanks, I can manage" in a friendly and nice way, the person will ask again the next time. So you have to do something yourself to make people treat you differently or more normally.
Now we would like to talk about your plans for the future. You've already announced your next big goal - next year you want to climb the Sugar Loaf Mountain in Rio. That sounds absolutely crazy. That's why we're all the more interested - how are the preparations going?
Corona has caused a lot of chaos here too, but I'm not letting it get me down. I've been training for this project for six to seven months, with a few hurdles and setbacks due to injuries, but I'm making very good progress. Sometimes it's up to 30 hours of training a week and of course the closer it gets to Rio, the more climbing-specific it will become, but I'm confident that it will work out sometime next year. The funny thing is - half of my brain is extremely excited about this project and the other half is thinking "Oh my God, you're stupid, how are you going to get up there?" But that's the beauty of it: having a seemingly unattainable challenge in front of you that you will hopefully conquer successfully at the end of the day. The preparation training naturally includes a lot of different training; my normal training as before, with the strength training being adapted more specifically, for example, and climbing-specific training such as hand strength training, climbing in the climbing gym and more flexibility through special stretching exercises. We also try out massage devices or other training methods, which we then discard again. It's definitely a development process, but it's also fun.
Your previous activities suggest that this is not the last of your ambitious plans. Do you have a 'bucket list'? And what's on it?
Is that right? That's quite funny. I think I do have a bucket list. One of the next projects that is still on the plan, and has actually been relevant for almost two years, is speed riding, which is skiing with skydiving; that will also come at some point. In fact, I have to say that none of my projects were really planned long in advance or I had in mind "yes, I really want to be able to do that one day" - except maybe surfing. So from my experience, I wouldn't say that there will never be a new project. Knowing me, by the time the project in Rio is over at the latest, there will be another idea just around the corner. So I would say: let's all just let ourselves be surprised - you and I - and I'm happy to have you by my side as support. Thank you very much and here's to the cool projects to come!
Thank you very much for the exciting interview, Johnny! We look forward to following your future path and wish you lots of fun and success!
