“It never ends” he says. “I’ve never been a competitive diver, I started it as a 15 year-old student. But it was great and I began to learn the dives.”
Later he joined the Masters movement in a double role. He competed and also served his mates as the team’s doctor. He knows that he might have kept his body in a better shape, but… “You know, recently I had too much work in the hospital. I’m doing surgeries where we implant prosthesis for hips and knees. It takes a lot of time…” And a bit more attention should also be channeled towards his own knee. “It hurt a bit during the competition, I have to take care of that” he adds.
While we are talking, he gets ready with his judging outfit and sits into one of the chairs. The ladies’ competition starts soon so Mr. Bayer is busy to insert the scores after each dive... Then, all of a sudden, one of the competitors hits the springboard with her left arm during a dive. The German doctor immediately jumps up from his chair and rushes to poolside to assess if his help is needed. A quick check, thanks God, nothing serious happened, so he can sit back and give his marks for the previous attempt.
Dr. Gerhard Bayer (GER) in the Aquatics Palace ©FINA Communication
Next day he is in the pool again, up on the boards and even competes in the platform as well. Diver, judge, doctor – in one person, offering his best in any field required.
This is what Masters are all about.