Glücklich zu sein, man selbst zu sein.4 Fotos

Many people remember Balian Buschbaum from his past life as a girl named Yvonne Buschbaum. In 2008, Yvonne—a talented German athlete specializing in pole vaulting—decided to change her gender. Today, Balian Buschbaum gives public seminars and lectures where he talks openly about himself, his feelings, and thoughts, and also compares the differences between male and female nature.

Yvonne Buschbaum was born in 1980 in the German city of Ulm. At the age of 18, she completed basic military training and began her brilliant sports career. Pole vaulting became her main discipline, and from 1998 to 2007, she achieved great success in various competitions, including world and European championships as well as the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney.

<

Her honors include a third place at the 1998 European Championships and another in 2002; second place at the 2002 European Indoor Championships; and sixth place at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

Yvonne’s personal record was set in June 2003 in her hometown of Ulm, with a height of 4.70 meters.

In November 2007, Yvonne announced that she would quit competitive sports due to numerous injuries. However, the real reason was a completely sensational one: she openly declared herself transgender and decided to change her gender. This came as a shock to many of her fans and supporters.After starting hormone therapy, she underwent gender-reassignment surgery in 2008 and officially changed her name to Balian Buschbaum.

On her official website, Balian expresses his heartfelt gratitude to his many fans for their support and the countless letters they have sent him. He says that their emotional support helped him through a very difficult period in his life, and now he is absolutely happy with his new identity.

Balian gladly poses for photographers, and his photos—even those showing him almost naked—make it hard to believe that he was once a girl named Yvonne. He looks utterly masculine, calm, friendly, relaxed, and happy.

“I want everyone to create their own happiness, because everyone deserves to be happy and live in harmony with themselves and all external factors,” Balian says.

Today, he gives public lectures where he talks about himself, his challenges, and his journey toward happiness.Balian also mentions that after quitting sports, he found a new hobby: motorcycle riding. As a man, he rides much faster than when he was a woman, and he notes that the female nature tends to be more compassionate, while a woman’s thoughts could easily fill the minds of three men.Regarding his current self, Balian says that he is much more confident and independent, and thus freer.