#SnowStories: Oars, obstacles, open snow – Kathrin Marchand is finding her joy again

Kathrin Marchand knows what it feels like to push past the point of reason. She did it in rowing, she did it to become a doctor, and she did it until her body shut down. At the height of her career, enduring 50-hour work weeks more often than not, the 35-year-old suffered a stroke that brought life to a sudden standstill.

To understand how she got there, you have to trace it back to where it all began. A childhood built around sport, a family of rowers, and a teenager who knew from an early age exactly what she wanted to be.

“I’ve been doing sports since I was a child,” she told FIS in an exclusive interview. “I started with gymnastics and ended up playing field hockey, [but] my whole family was a rowing family, so I switched to that when I was 14.

“I continued rowing until 2016, and after two Olympics, I decided to follow my job. I wanted to finish my exams and work as a doctor.”

For years, the path felt straightforward. Then came an injury that forced Kathrin to fight for her place on the water all over again. In what she describes as one of the toughest moments of her career, a month-long shoulder issue meant she was no longer able to compete with Kerstin Hartmann, losing that partnership.

Yet, even facing the possibility of missing out, she dug deep and fought to get back in the boat with Hartmann, saying: “I would say that is one of the most defining parts of the first half of my career because I really learned to push myself on my own.”

The pair would eventually compete together again, winning a European silver before competing for Germany at the Olympic Games in Rio, which turned out to be Kathrin’s farewell to the sport that had anchored her life up until that point.

It wasn’t a decision taken lightly, more so with the future in mind. After giving so much to the sport, she was ready to channel that energy into pursuing her career in medicine and spending more time with loved ones.

Day shifts, night shifts, and everything in between – Kathrin channeled everything she had into finishing her studies, enjoying a ‘normal student life’ as she left sport in the rearview mirror, albeit temporarily.

In 2021, everything came to a screeching halt after suffering a stroke when she was 31. Some may call it a tragedy, but Kathrin considers it divine intervention.

“When I look back, some may not understand, but I would say the stroke was really the best thing to happen to me,” she admitted. “Before it, I was stressed so much on working to becoming a doctor, I had no time for friends and family I was only working.”

It has given her a new outlook on life, adding: “When you survive a stroke, you have the honor to be alive. I can do things I really want to do. I’m so grateful that I have this chance to do the best I can with my life, this is what I’m doing now.”

The stroke made Kathrin take a break, once an unthinkable act, prompting a rethink of what comes next. Within this, sport found its way back in. It was a reset she never knew she needed, one that has led her to where she is for this interview: up early for a training camp in Toblach, preparing for the Winter Paralympics.

From the steady waters of rowing to the unpredictable terrain of cross-country, she is showing what is possible when, even in the face of setbacks, you pursue your goals.

Kathrin Marchand: Your body is not a machine

In the immediate aftermath of the stroke, Kathrin spent a lot of time getting back to basics. With little to no movement on her left side, the everyday tasks can become difficult let alone when competing internationally.

New goals emerged as a result, in life and in sport, keeping things simple and within reach for someone navigating an entirely new way of living.

“I would say that sport became my rehabilitation, learning about my body and what I was able to do even with a disability,” Kathrin explained.

“I learned to see things different; I keep my goals [grounded] because I know I’m not able to give 100 per cent every time. I learned that breaks are more important than the exercise itself. You learn that your body is not a machine. The most important thing I learned was to take care of your body for your health.”

With that outlook, and the mindset of a professional athlete, the dual-sport competitor made her way back to the water with the ambition of competing again. A two-time Olympian, Marchand became a first-time Paralympian when she represented her country in Paris just three years on from that life-changing stroke.

Just last year, she became a world champion in the mixed double sculls, as well as a bronze medalist in the mixed coxed four.  For all the triumph in her comeback, there was an itch to do something new – and after a conversation with a coach, she found that in cross-country.

Rowing and skiing bear a lot of similarities, more than Kathrin had even expected, particularly with the emphasis on full body strength. The biggest challenge, however, has been getting used to flying solo after years of competing as a team player.

“In rowing I’m never alone, but in skiing I have to take care of myself,” she said. “I have to be right on time on the start, get the transponder and the bibs, I have to know where my skis are – all these things stress me before the start.”

For all the difficulties, though, cross-country offered her something invaluable: a fresh start. No expectations as a newcomer, room to both fail and succeed without the weight of the world on her shoulders.

“It was really cool to learn something new and see that you can improve, you can get better if you invest time and energy,” the German continued. “I did not expect to get this far, to qualify for these Games, but here we are. It’s really nice.”

Kathrin Marchand on life with an invisible disability

If you looked at Kathrin, you may see what many others have told her they see: a healthy woman rowing or skiing or serving her community as a medical professional. What many fail to see, that leaves her feeling the need to over-explain a lot of the time, is the stroke that has left an exhaustive impact on her.

It bleeds into competition, where some could assume she has an advantage or there is ‘nothing wrong’ with her. She opened up about this, saying: “When you’re fast and you win a race, people say there’s nothing wrong and she has no problem so of course she is winning, she has no disability.

“I’ve done sports every day for more than 20 years now. I have very good endurance and power, this [Milano Cortina] is my fourth Games. I have the mindset of a professional athlete – this isn’t the result of one year; this is what I have learned in the last 20 years.”

More recently, Kathrin has decided to leave any explanations to classifiers, one of several changes she has made at this stage of her life. She is still working as a doctor, though significantly fewer hours than before.

She spends her time on the water, on the snow, or in the gym working on weights and endurance, making time for essential breaks and her loved ones: “I would say I have a good balance between work, exercise, social, and free time,” she added.

It has helped restore the joy and fun that comes with the disciplines she participates in. If the fire is still burning, whether there are medals part of the equation or not, she intends to continue following her heart.

“I hope I can quit sports and see what other things life can bring to me, but I hope I can do this for as long as possible,” she said. “I want to show other people we can achieve a lot of things if we are dreaming.

“Chase your dreams and leave your comfort zone, even if it seems impossible, just go on [and] find something that fits you, that you love to do.

“I’m sure that if you are happy, happy things will happen to you.”

As Kathrin braces herself for something new, a Winter Paralympics, she does so on her own terms and with no pressure, just joy in what she does – proof that rebuilding yourself doesn’t always require a clean break, only the courage to keep moving.