Cookies, juices and apples are on the makeshift snack bar in the hotel room. A hula hoop leans against the wall. Nicola Eisenschmid is sitting in a good mood DEBsweater in front of her laptop. Before she spoke to us, she did a workout with her teammates. Also digital, because the players are in quarantine before they start preparing for the IIHF Ice Hockey Women's World Championship in Calgary (Canada) on Monday, August 16, after negative corona tests.
Nici, thank you for taking time for us during quarantine. How are you doing?
Nicola Eisenschmid: I'm fine thank you. I haven't had a down phase yet or the need to “I have to get out of here immediately”. Of course I would like to get out, but so far the quarantine is totally fine. We can open the windows, I'm happy about that. And we are always in touch through our team WhatsApp group.
How did your trip to Calgary go?
Nicola Eisenschmid: The trip was relaxed. Flying is stressful, but everything was really well organized and went smoothly. For example, we had pretzels and pasta salad with us that we ate before the flight. There were three other teams on board with us. The flight went by quickly, even though I didn't sleep at all. But that's a good thing because jet lag doesn't hit you as hard.
After landing, each team was greeted by a host. We picked up our luggage, got on the bus and drove straight to the hotel. Everything in the hotel was also very well organized. On a table were individual envelopes for all the players and our supervisors with hotel cards, check-in wristbands, etc. One floor up we took a corona test, said goodbye to our team members and went to our hotel rooms.
How were the first few hours of quarantine?
Nicola Eisenschmid: On our first evening it was really “exciting” – who gets their food and when? The hotel employees have a lot to do, and the teams from Hungary, Denmark, the Czech Republic and Japan - all from Group B - are also in our hotel. Of course, we didn't mind if we had to wait a bit - and joked in our WhatsApp group about who would have to wait the longest.
What does a “normal” quarantine day look like?
Nicola Eisenschmid: I wake up around 6:30 a.m. then I meditate or do yoga. I often talk to the girls over breakfast on the phone, especially my sister Tanja, Marie Delarbre and Bernadette Karpf. This is our “Breakfast Club” so we don’t have to eat alone.
After breakfast I wait for the team meeting to start. There we discuss organizational issues and then we do a workout. And then we have “free time”.
Was machst du in deiner Freizeit?
Nicola Eisenschmid: I make a lot of phone calls. Sometimes I do a few extra sessions with the girls over Zoom, like abdominal workouts. I actually still have to write a paper for university. We've also started setting each other "challenges," like juggling tennis balls. That brings variety and a way to pass the time. Sometimes I watch films and documentaries on Netflix—although there's so much going on that I haven't watched a single film in one go. I also have my Nintendo Switch with me and a hula hoop. I've already thought about what I can and want to do during the quarantine days.
Do you meet again online in the afternoon or evening?
Nicola Eisenschmid: Yes, that is also good and important for the team feeling. In the afternoon we have another meeting and training. For example, we do yoga or Zumba, which we organize as players. Jenny does yoga (Jennifer Harss, editor's note), Zumba does Becci (Rebecca Orendorz, editor's note). These sessions are fun and sometimes we burst out laughing.
A few days ago we met virtually with the team and played online card games, which was really fun. Tabea, Laura and Sandra (Tabea Botthof, Laura Kluge, Sandra Abstreiter, editor's note) have come up with a questionnaire with questions like “Who will get married next”. They sent this catalog to us, we responded and are looking forward to the evaluation.
So you won't get bored. Are there things that are explicitly not allowed?
Nicola Eisenschmid: The first rule is: We are not allowed to leave the hotel rooms. We are allowed to open the door, bring food in, and put the food out again. Once a day we get a bike for an hour. The hotel staff put it outside the door, I cycle, then I put the bike outside again. It is disinfected and then it goes to the next player.
What three things are essential for you in quarantine?
Nicola Eisenschmid: Definitely my cell phone. To make phone calls, to keep in touch, to avoid becoming lonely. This is what I use the most right now. Snacks and eating your own food are also important for feeling good. And of course I have my sports equipment with me: tennis balls, jump rope, mat and a hula hoop.
That was enough quarantine for now. Let's talk about the World Cup. What expectations do you have of yourself and your performance?
Nicola Eisenschmid: I hope that I can build on my performance from last season. We are only at the beginning of the season, but I still want to be at my peak and help the team to go as far as possible.
What expectations are there of the team?
Nicola Eisenschmid: We think from game to game and want to get the best out of it together. We haven't played against the other teams for a long time. Our last game against another women's national team was against Austria before the canceled World Cup. That's why sometimes we don't even know what to expect. So we have to go into every game, try to give our best performance and make sure the opponents adapt to us. And then hopefully it will be enough to win.
You start preparing for the World Cup on Monday. What do you focus on?
Nicola Eisenschmid: We will deal with the system and the structure. We definitely also do power play and box play, i.e. outnumbered games. And we will look at a lot of things within the line to ensure that we play well as a team in the games.
There is still a friendly match against Denmark before the World Cup starts next weekend.
Nicola Eisenschmid: Yes, that's great, because the ice surface here is smaller and also much faster. A test match is good to get into the tournament. It's also good that we can try out a few things without it really counting.
It starts against Hungary on Saturday. What is important against your first opponents?
Nicola Eisenschmid: It's important that we get into the game well and that we play quickly. We should get a lot of targets to the goal. We should overrun the Hungarians and prevent them from overrunning us. From a mental point of view we have to be fully present and focused. If we can do that, we have a big advantage.
Additional information: https://www.deb-online.de/team/frauen-nationalmannschaft/