- Philipp Buhl and the games of his life
- Best German Ilca helmsman not in the squad
- Two squad comeback chances this year
- Buhl bemoans lack of advocacy
- Coach-athlete team comes to an end after nine years
- A four-second video with consequences
- Buhl on his own for the comeback for the time being
- Uncompromising Olympic campaign remains the goal
Philipp Buhl has achieved almost everything he set out to do in Olympic sailing. His 2020 World Championship gold medal won on the home turf of two-time Australian Olympic champion Matt Wearn was the highlight of his career to date, in which he won four World Championship and three European Championship medals - more than any German sailor has ever managed in this major Olympic discipline. Only the longed-for Olympic medal is still missing for the Allgäuer after painful defeats under the sign of the five rings. He now wants to go after it one last time.
Philipp Buhl and the games of his life
Buhl described his motto for this last summer when he returned to work as follows: "I don't want to do it again. I want to do it differently. I want to do it better." Prior to that, he had taken some time out and time to reflect after his unfortunate 13th place at the 2024 Olympic regatta in Marseille, scrutinising his career and his life as a whole. He also needed the time "to heal my mental injury". This was granted to him by the association in squad status.
Even during this phase, Buhl realised that he was not finished with the games of his life. At the end of the refocussing phase, he was certain: he wanted to give it one last go, he wanted to compete for the Olympic medal once again, which had always been one of his two major goals. The other has long since been achieved with gold at the World Championships. Now, however, Buhl's fourth campaign in the coming months will be much more difficult than he had hoped, as the German Sailing Association (DSV) is sailing into the future without the top performer in the squad for the time being.
The chronology of events: Following Buhl's previously announced decision not to compete at the World Championships in the Olympic Ilca 7 discipline in China early in 2025, which had been agreed with the association, the European Championships were agreed as an "alternative criterion" for his fulfilment of the squad criteria. Buhl finished 14th at the European Championships in Marstrand, Sweden, after returning to the sport and therefore missed out on confirmation for the squad.
Best German Ilca helmsman not in the squad
At the end of the year, Buhl was not helped by the fact that, despite his long break, he was always clearly the best German player in all four regattas he contested in 2025 when it came to deciding on the sailors' squad appointments for 2026. There was no positive "individual case decision" for Buhl.
While several younger Ilca 7 helmsmen were appointed to the prospective squad on the basis of their performance, the 37-year-old oldest and best in his class lost his place in a system that takes into account neither the top position in Germany he regained after his comeback, nor past successes or potential. Buhl is now complaining about this. He criticises and argues, gets angry, provokes and fights.
DSV head coach Dom Tidey explained Buhl's non-nomination: "The selection process is age-based within the German system. Every year they get older, the performance expectation gets tougher. There are some teams that are not included in the squad." Philipp Buhl's training buddy and flatmate Justin Barth also still has to confirm the squad status he initially received. His condition: he must finish in the top 20 at the European Championships in May.
Two squad comeback chances this year
Buhl's younger club mate Julian Hoffmann looked back on the joint training of the Ilca 7 group and said: "Philipp brought enormous added value to our training group. With his experience and knowledge, he epitomised the standards of the world's best in every training session. That is a real loss." However, the federation refrained from appointing Buhl to the squad after missing the squad criteria and other "unfulfilled sport-specific requirements".
Head coach Dom Tidey said: "The performance criteria were clearly communicated. Philipp did not meet the squad targets at the selection event. We need to maintain consistent standards across the team." Fourth place at the Kieler Woche directly after the time-outThe victory at the IDM in autumn and the recent convincing December performance as winner of a winter regatta off Lanzarote were not enough for Buhl.
The bottom line was that the German number one in the Ilca 7, who is still undisputed by everyone, was temporarily out of the squad. This bad news for Buhl was accompanied by the prospect of being able to sail his way back into the squad with a top-three result at the European Championships from 15 to 22 May in Kastela, Croatia.
Buhl bemoans lack of advocacy
Buhl sees the task as a "classic Olympic squad criterion", calling it "unrealistic" in view of the European Championship field that is likely to be ready for the World Championships. What is required is "a result in the top two per cent, which even the best do not often achieve in the Laser". Because the Ilca 7 fleet is the largest in the Olympics, the task is also more difficult for him than for squad candidates in other disciplines.
Philipp Buhl sees his long-time Ilca 7 coach Alexander Schlonski as the main cause of his current offside position. He had criticised Schlonski's work internally before the squad decisions were made and, after around nine years of working together, had called for the Ilca 7 senior coaching position to be filled or reshuffled, but in his view only received evasive answers or none at all.
When it came to the squad decision, Buhl no longer felt supported by Schlonski. "With Justin Barth, Alex spoke out in favour of Justin in the individual decision. He kept quiet about me. He could have said that he didn't like me, but that he saw the perspective that I had clearly shown. Alex knows that I'm the best laser sailor in Germany. But he didn't say: 'Philipp has the greatest potential, we need him', instead he kicked me out," says Buhl about his long-time coach.
Coach-athlete team comes to an end after nine years
The once well-functioning athlete-coach relationship has experienced ups and downs since it began after the 2016 Rio Games. Before the Olympic regatta in Marseille 2024, however, after Buhl's test collaborations with other coaches, they both decided to make another joint Olympic medal attempt - Buhl's third. 13th place was a big disappointment for both. Now Buhl says after his analyses: "I don't want to work with him any more because he no longer has the drive needed to make another impact. This issue is at the root of the situation."
According to his analyses, the coach sees the situation differently when working with the Ilca 7 group. Alex Schlonski says: "Philipp really got all the support he needed. He had a huge amount of support from the association for his long time out and the chance to fulfil the squad requirements. He did that often enough, but now he hasn't done it twice in a row. The key question for me is not why he didn't make the squad, but why he didn't fulfil the squad standard with his ability and experience. Philipp knows my answer to that. Then we wouldn't be having this discussion right now."
Schlonski still recognises Buhl's "outstanding abilities", but also says after their long journey together: "I'm not his punching ball." Philipp Buhl reacted drastically to his non-inclusion in the squad at the last international regatta of the year, which he won in December, because he felt that he and his criticism had been "unheard" for "months": On Lanzarote, he stripped off his team bib and symbolically disposed of it in a rubbish bin. This was shown in a four-second clip on Instagram that deleted itself after 24 hours without further comment.
A four-second video with consequences
"I'm happy to apologise for that. I don't want to argue with the DSV. But the bib seemed to me to be the last chance for people to talk to me. About what happened. And why. I know that the clip was provocative, but it could have been worse. I saw it as a last resort and it worked. They finally spoke to me and I was able to explain my motives," explains Buhl.
Buhl argues that "top-class sport funding should be orientated towards potential success". This is also stated in a draft law by the German government that has not yet come into force. Buhl points to a passage in the bill that states: "The position of top athletes will be strengthened and their needs will be given greater consideration in the context of potential- and success-orientated funding."
There's no arguing that I'm the best-performing Ilca sailor in the team." Philipp Buhl
However, the published clip was discussed and penalised. Dom Tidey explained: "The post was concerning as we had agreed to support Philipp financially and logistically, including paid training and access to facilities, despite his non-nomination. The post showed disrespect to the team who are still investing in his way back. This has changed the situation. We had to re-evaluate the support package."
Buhl on his own for the comeback for the time being
Buhl now has to bear the consequences: even without squad status, he had permission to store his boat in the DSV hall in Kiel and to use the facilities at the German Sailing Association's national base and technical support, but these privileges have been cancelled for the time being.
The clip outraged the federation, head coach Dom Tidey, sports director Nadine Stegenwalner and also DSV president Mona Küppers. Buhl may have gained the hearing he had hoped for, but it also cost him credit with the association's decision-makers and support. "That changed the landscape for us, we had to act," says Dom Tidey. However, Buhl's squad comeback goal of reaching the top three at the European Championships remains valid.
DSV Sports Director Nadine Stegenwalner added: "We would like to see Philipp concentrate on sailing. If things get wild - not on the water, but on land and in the media - then we might have to take the chance. To achieve good cooperation, there needs to be good communication and trust on both sides."
I think I know how he feels, but at the moment I can only speak for us. The trust has to be rebuilt." Nadine Stegenwalner
Uncompromising Olympic campaign remains the goal
Philipp Buhl is now considering his options. According to his own estimates, cancelling his support outside of the squad could cost him up to 30,000 euros. However, he remains undeterred in his Olympic campaign. For this, he needs partners and companions who trust his ability, his potential and his willpower.
If Buhl wants to seize his chance to return to the squad in May, "everything would have to go perfectly". The most important target competition of the year for him is therefore the World Championships following the European Championships in the last week of August in Dun Laoghaire, Ireland. He wants to be in the top eight there at the latest and sail his way back into the squad.
Until then, he is sailing on the abyss. "With a slimmed-down programme", he wants to "get by" until August. "Then I'll just put my lunch bag on the launch. But I need people who believe in me. Then I can continue. I need to mobilise basic funding to get back to the uncompromising campaign that it can only be this time." Buhl has also turned down an offer from SailGP. He wants to focus on the big goal of the Olympics one last time.
