Antonia Plagge

Antonia Plagge is currently studying Psychology at Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf. During her studies, she spent time in Ghana, where she worked with teachers and students at local schools on topics such as mental health and learning disabilities. She also organized and led a sports tournament for children, preparing the students beforehand through activities at the schools. This experience strengthened her interest in combining psychology and sport.

From August to October 2026, Antonia is completing an internship at the HRV LABorde at the German Sports University Cologne, where she is also writing her Bachelor's thesis under the supervision of Sylvain Laborde. Her work focuses on psychophysiology, particularly Heart Rate Variability, breathing, and the relationship between physiological and psychological regulation.

Having competed in high-performance basketball herself, Antonia has experienced first-hand how important psychological support can be for athletes. Since she did not have access to professional psychological support during her own athletic career, she became particularly passionate about making this kind of support more accessible to athletes.

She plans to pursue a Master's degree in Sport Psychology at the German Sports University Cologne and, in the long term, aims to work as a sport psychologist in high-performance sport. Her goal is to help athletes, teams, and coaches use psychological and physiological insights to support both well-being and sustainable performance.