Mr. Müller, not a day goes by when a colleague in the German national ice hockey team doesn’t have to be in quarantine or a team announces that they are not able to play because of too many corona failures. How are you dealing with the situation?
Last year the whole theme was new, and it felt a bit like an adventure. Each of us wanted one thing above all after the long forced break in lockdown: play ice hockey. Now I’m noticing that I’m a bit tired of the corona virus. The pandemic gnaws at you. But there is no easy way out. So we all have to try to make the best of it together.
Is there time and leisure to mentally prepare for the Olympics?
Sure, that works. The Olympic Games play a big role in my mind. Even if they are different this time because of Corona, it is still a highlight of their career. I’m really looking forward to it!
You spoke of a balancing act between morale and medals that the participants in Beijing face. How concerned are you with the criticism of China in your preparation?
I think that sport is being used again for other things, to take a stand, which is actually not its original task. It’s the Olympic Games. And I’m Moritz Müller, the athlete flying to Beijing to play ice hockey. Sport is too often misused to further political ends or to set right something that went wrong at some other level. It’s not the business of sport and athletes to fix problems in the world that they can’t do anything about.
But your voice as a top athlete carries weight. You are an idol for many people. What you contribute to discussions about values or human rights falls on a different sounding board and can make a difference. Don’t you think that’s appropriate?
That is absolutely right. But it should be up to each athlete whether he wants to criticize or not. Believe me, each of us can and will speak our minds if we choose. But it should not be assumed that he does it on command.
