Diver Timo Barthel is again a champion in Europe. He teamed up with fellow German Moritz Linus Wesemann to win the men’s synchronized 3-meter springboard at the European Championships over the weekend.
He’d been part of the bronze-medal-winning duos in the 10-meter platform synchro at the 2020 and 2022 European Championships. He and teammate Jaden Eikermann placed seventh in the 10-meter synchro at the 2024 Olympics.
Barthel has competed in two Olympics as a diver for Germany. He won the 10-meter platform at the 2023 European Championships, adding to his impressive medal haul.
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At the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, he finished 17th in the 10-meter platform. His ultimate triumph on the Olympic stage came in Paris in 2024, when he made it all the way to the final, finishing in sixth place.
Will we see him competing at the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles? We can only hope so.
Barthel first won over Outsports readers when we reached out ahead of the Tokyo Olympics to ask him if he is gay, bi or straight. We reached out because a reader pointed out that his Instagram contained a self-description as “athlete, human, diver” bracketed by rainbows and #LGBTQ on some posts
His answer endeared him to us.
Plus… those Instagram posts…
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“Hey, I am not given a name,” Barthel, at the time 25, wrote to Outsports. “Human is human. It’s doesn’t matter which side you attracted to and It doesn’t matter which skin color you have. Human is human.”
Asked again ahead of the Paris Olympics last summer, he was equally coy.
“Humanity is what counts. And love is love. Doesn’t matter which direction.”
He started an OnlyFans account to help cover some of the costs of training and competing. No doubt plenty of gay and bi men are interested in what this incredibly fit diver has to share on the site known for sharing a lot. He’s posted a couple hundred times on his account.
It’s cool to see an athlete of his caliber so open and free.
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