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8 goldK1 500m(Moscow 1980, Barcelona 1992)K2 500m(Seoul 1988, Sydney 2000)K4 500m(Seoul 1988, Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000, Athens 2004)4 silverK1 500m(Seoul 1988)K2 500m(Atlanta 1996, Athens 2004)K4 500m(Barcelona 1992)AboveBirgit Fischer (front) teamed up with Katrin Wagner to claim gold in the K2 500m in SydneyRightIn action at the Olympic Games Seoul 1988asked for more. I was 38 at the time and thought, “I’m kind of getting old now”. But then I was asked to get back into the boat during a photo-shoot for a magazine in 2003. So I got in, and paddled as if I’d only just got out yesterday. It was incredible. And I suddenly got this feeling and thought, “Awesome. The Olympic Games are calling”. I was utterly overweight at the time, and hadn’t trained in three years. I then trained for exactly 303 days – that’s how much time I had to prepare for Athens 2004 – and managed to win gold and silver aged 42.WINNING OLYMPIC GOLD IN ATHENS AT 42 YEARS OLDIt felt incredible – even during the race. Hungary had won the world championships three years in a row. Naturally, they really wanted to win and probably thought they had it in the bag. Born 25 February 1962 in Brandenburg, Germany6Competed in six editions of the Games between 1980 and 200412Olympic medals won across three canoe sprint eventsusually experience big audiences. The Games are much more emotional, as you suddenly have a much bigger viewing public and huge numbers of people standing along the regatta course. The attention and regard athletes receive during the Games is a different thing. It is the ultimate experience.MY PROUDEST MOMENTSI’m proud of all my achievements but if I had to single some out, it would have to be the successes after my comebacks. I took three years off to have children and do other things. When I then stepped back into my old level of performance, and won again, it was simply terrific. After the birth of my son, I competed at the world championships and won three times. Similarly, after my daughter’s birth, I came back to the Olympic Games in 1992 and won the K1. It was the same in 2004. I had had a break for three years – and when I say break, I really mean a break because I don’t do sport when I’m on a break, I’m pretty lazy. I’m not one of those athletes, who gets up in the morning and thinks, “I must exercise”. I always needed a goal. If I had a goal – and that had to be either the world championships or the Olympic Games – then I’d get cracking.MY FIRST ‘RETIREMENT’In 2000, I was absolutely ready to retire. I thought, “Right, that’s it. Enough now”. That year [at the Olympic Games Sydney 2000] I had carried the German flag at the Opening Ceremony, and I had won two gold medals – you couldn’t have FACT FILE74 OLYMPIC REVIEW MY GAMES