Baur Moves From German Army to Harlem River

Timm Baur hoists the Blackwell Cup

Timm Baur, CC ’10, is a 23-year-old heavyweight rower at Columbia University, formerly of the German army and national rowing team where he and his teammates won a gold medal at the World Rowing Under 23 Championships in 2004. To say he brings “experience” to the Columbia varsity eights would be an understatement.

“I was rowing since I was 11 years old,” said the affable Baur. “By the time I was 15, I was practicing six days a week, and after that I practiced seven days a week, with a day off usually every two weeks.”

After graduating high school, Baur participated in a special unit in the German army that allowed amateur athletes to train full time under the army’s funding. “We just had to go through basic training,” Baur said. “I took it, and since I wasn’t really sure what to do with my life, I did it for two years and qualified for the under-23 national team twice more.”

Baur met with a Columbia recruiter in August 2005. “I applied because I had nothing to lose. If it hadn’t worked out, I would have just stayed in Germany and tried out for the Olympic team.”

When he was accepted, Baur had a pivotal choice to make. He didn’t want to rush the decision. “It took me about half a year to decide what I wanted to do,” Baur said. “In the end, I thought the Olympic games would be great, but I didn’t have a guaranteed place at the time. On the other side, with a Columbia education I would stand a lot better chance of landing a good job, so in fall 2006 I came to New York and now I’m rowing on the Harlem every morning at 7 a.m.”

After rowing for the German national team seven days a week and serving in the German army, how tough could the Columbia life really be?

“After not really doing anything for my brain for two years, it took me a while to get adjusted to the system,” said Baur. “I had to relearn how to learn, basically. The Core [in college] is unfamiliar to Germans, since we do that in high school, but as soon as we go to university we focus solely on our subject. However, LitHum and CC definitely enrich everyone who reads the books and thinks about them.”

Baur seems to be mastering a challenge to which many student-athletes can relate—the balancing act between his academic endeavors and the obligation to his varsity team. “Reading 400 pages a week in a foreign language was definitely tricky, but by now I’ve got myself settled in the system fairly well. I’ve learned how to handle the stress and workload.”

Many student-athletes often ask themselves, is it worth it? Not Baur. “Winning an important race is definitely a great gratification,” he said. “It [Rowing] teaches you discipline; it is a sport that just requires everyone in the boat to discipline himself, and I think that’s a very valuable skill to have for the rest of your life.”

The heavyweight rowing team has had much success this year, perhaps coinciding with the fact that this is Baur’s first year on the varsity team. However, Baur was quick to praise his teammates for this year’s improvement.

“The whole team pushes each other to a new limit everyday,” he said. “You have to function as one: it’s the whole eight, plus the coxswain, plus the coach. I try to have a positive impact on the crew, and so far its been working out.”

Although he misses his friends and family in Germany, Baur seems happy that he chose the Columbia route. “A once in a lifetime chance,” he called it. “I just needed to take it. It’s a great school, the professors are good, the education is good. Overall, I think I made the right choice.”

Baur’s athletic pursuits don’t end on the water. He plans to participate in November’s New York City Marathon. “I’ve done marathons on skates a few times at home in Berlin,” he said. “Unfortunately, NYC doesn’t allow skaters to run in the marathon, so I have to do it by foot. A great way to see the city.”

Baur is an economics major and aspires to work in finance in New York.