Zwift Academy Success Stories: Melanie Scheikel

As we continue with the very first Zwift Academy Run program, let’s take a closer look at some of its participants!

In this episode of Zwift Academy Success Stories we hear from Melanie Scheikel about her life, her love of running, and her Zwift journey to date.

A Young Athlete

Melanie was born in 1973 and has lived in Buxtehude near Hamburg in Germany since she was 12 years old.

She married in 1996 and has three children: two girls ages 22 and 15, and an 11-year-old boy.

She began her sporting career at just 6 years of age playing badminton, squash, tennis, soccer, basketball, and cycling. In 1986 at the age of 13, she took up ballroom dancing. By 1992, Melanie and her partner were the highest in their class and achieving world rankings. She was a professional athlete and became a trainer, judge, and tournament official.

Devastating injury

In October 2016, at a championship event, Melanie collided with another dance couple. She shattered discs in her spine and doctors told her she would never walk again, let alone dance.

She was completely dependent on others. She says, “I couldn’t do anything. Brush hair, hold a water bottle or cup.”

But Melanie was determined to prove the doctors wrong. She says that she began with just her head, discipline, and hard work. Before the end of that year, she had “stumbled” a 3-kilometer lap around her house. She forced her feet to work step by step.

World Class Again

Less than a year later in September 2017, Melanie danced with a new partner in a German ranking competition and made it through to a world ranking event in Denmark. The pair traveled to Copenhagen in February 2018 and danced into third place.

Melanie describes this as her best ever result in ballroom dancing, the greatest moment of her sporting career, and a fitting way to retire from the sport she had loved since she was a child.

Starting to Run

After her ballroom dancing career came to a close, Melanie needed to stay active and keep herself fit. She decided to take up running.

She immediately fell in love with the sport, explaining “you can do it anywhere, alone, with friends.”

She started with 100-meter races and gradually moved up the distances, taking part in 5k races and eventually up to half marathon distance. She regularly wins her age group and has also managed to win the women’s category of some races.

She is now a licensed coach and run leader in her hometown and has a run group ages 19 to 70 whom she describes not only as her run crew, but her friends.

Zwift and Beyond

For Melanie, the pressure of professional competition is gone. It’s a weight off. Now she runs for the love of it. As well as her outside run community, Melanie has found an equally valuable community spirit on Zwift. “Great workouts and great community. I love it so much,” she says.

Having reached the half marathon distance, Melanie is determined to run marathon distance one day. However, she’s not neglecting the shorter distances.

Very recently Melanie beat her half marathon and 5k personal best times. She ran the Digital Hella Hamburg Half Marathon, 53 laps of a 400 metre track, in 1:46, alone and in the rain! She also competed in her hometown annual 5k and finished in a personal best time of 21:53.

Melanie is quick to credit Zwift with helping her to achieve these milestones.

Zwift Academy Run

Melanie is currently taking part in the Zwift Academy Run program and is hoping to be one of those selected to run the Berlin Marathon. Although (she jokes), living in Germany, she was rather hoping the prize might at least see her leave her home country!