This Is Me

It all started when I was 13, during a camping holiday with my parents' friends who set up a slackline. I kept trying, but at first I could barely take more than a few steps. When we got back home from the trip, I discovered videos on YouTube of people doing tricks on a slackline — even backflips. I was completely fascinated and immediately spent my pocket money on my very first slackline. The slackline fever had me completely hooked, and from then on I practised my first tricks every day after school in the garden.

Two years later, in 2014, I entered my first slackline contest at the Donauinselfest in Vienna and finished in 2nd place behind Friedi Kühne. That same year I also became Austrian national slackline champion for the first time. This led to an invitation to Red Bull Airlines — one of the biggest and most prestigious slackline competitions in the world at the time.

Twelve of the world's best slackliners had been invited. The stunning backdrop — right in the historic old town of Catania, Sicily — combined with around 5,000 spectators on-site created an atmosphere at Red Bull Airlines unlike anything I had experienced before.

The competition was also exceptional because multiple slacklines were rigged parkour-style at roughly eight metres above the ground.

At the time I was just 15 years old and had never flown anywhere alone before. There were an overwhelming number of new impressions all at once, and I tried to absorb as much as possible — even if the pressure made that difficult at times.

In the end it turned out I handled the pressure remarkably well: I made it to the final and finished in 5th place.

Looking back, this moment is certainly one of the most beautiful experiences of my slackline journey so far — especially because I got to share it with Marius Kitowski, a German slackliner I had been in regular contact with since the very beginning of my slackline days.

Motivated by my successful 2014 contest season more than ever, I trained almost every day in a stretch of forest close to my parents' house. It was there, on a sunny winter's day, that I landed the first ever Backside 720 Freefall — a double backward corkscrew from a sitting position onto the chest. No one had ever landed this trick before: a true "World's First." Shortly afterwards I also landed the first Double Backflip in the German-speaking world, a trick I had been working towards for a long time.

In 2015 I was also invited to the first edition of Red Bull Slackship. Picture Red Bull Airlines — only higher and even more extreme. The event took place in Poland near Gdańsk, specifically 20 metres up on the "Dar Mlodziezy," one of the world's largest sailing ships. It felt completely insane; you really had to switch off your mind and focus entirely on your body and the slackline.

In the following years I took part in several more contests, including the Slackline World Cup in Munich and further editions of Red Bull Airlines and Red Bull Slackship, where I reached the final once again.

For the first time, slacklines were integrated into the Cirque du Soleil show "Michael Jackson ONE," into Dubai's first permanent show "La Perle," and on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship.

So it happened that after finishing school I received an offer as a slackline performer from Royal Caribbean. On the world's second-largest cruise ship, "Harmony of the Seas," I performed alongside Olympic divers, synchronised swimmers, high divers and dancers. In Miami we rehearsed two different 45-minute shows, which we then performed in an Aqua Theater on the ship for several months. As a featured performer I completed over 200 performances of the show "The Fine Line" and over 50 performances of the second show "Big Daddy's Hideaway Heist".

When the Covid-19 pandemic brought the entertainment industry to a complete standstill, I returned home. But I tried to make the best of the situation and set myself new goals. Since it had sometimes been difficult to train consistently and push my performance level while maintaining a busy show schedule, I used the time to train more than ever — with the aim of coming out of the pandemic stronger, refreshed and with new tricks.

I also decided to think long-term and enrolled in university alongside my slacklining. After the first events in 2021 I gained a whole new appreciation for performing in front of a live audience and felt just how much energy the crowd can give you.

Alongside my studies and intensive training I had the privilege of working on many special projects in recent years, where slacklining was used in new and creative contexts every time. This variety is exactly what excites me: every stage, every location and every production brings its own unique challenges.