Stefanie Graf besucht ihre Stiftung Children for Tomorrow, NDR

I don't know if you've heard yet Steffi Graf was in Hamburg That used to mean when Steffi Graf was here World-class tennis pure Today that means pure charity Yesterday the former tennis star received a check for 200 000 euros Received for the Steffi Graf Foundation And on the side she gave David Heine exclusive insights into her work As a tennis legend she is used to being in the spotlight But tennis is not the reason Why Steffi Graf is visiting the University Hospital in Hamburg Here a building of her foundation has been standing for more than three years This helps mainly children who have become victims of war persecution and the most brutal violence o process their cruel experiences You have accomplished something tremendous by making it here When you consider that most children who find their way to our foundation Children for Tomorrow are refugees from Afghanistan Africa and Syria When you hear about the escape routes It's hard to imagine that one can endure it Like the 13-year-old Ali He fled with his family from Afghanistan almost a year ago He has been in treatment at Steffis Foundation for nearly 3 months now To process traumatic memories art therapy helps Children can express their memories on paper It's better to express it than to talk about it Always have one of eight psychologists there It's almost unimaginable what people have to go through So many touching moments arise Very many beautiful but of course also very many depressing situations when you just hear that children have to grow up in such an environment Steffi's childhood is completely different She is considered a prodigy At the age of three she first holds a tennis racket in her hand At 13 she becomes a professional As the only player in the world to date she wins the Golden Slam in 1988 It means she wins all four Grand Slam tournaments in a single year and also takes home Olympic gold Despite all the success and fame she has gained she never forgets that there is another side to the medal I always look forward to the opportunity to speak with the patients or the children for a few minutes or simply to observe and of course also to see the progress It is a great motivation for me to continue helping them and ultimately make these therapies possible Steffi enjoys her time in Hamburg because she knows her help is needed Their gaming partners in foosball are between 16 and 17 years old They are fleeing from Afghanistan or Africa without their families Your way to Germany is life- threatening Some of them are being shot at The goal of therapy is to rebuild the children's souls Why is Steffi doing that It was the children They were children I met who told me about their stories which were very emotional and those that have touched me emotionally simply And these children are our future So I take it for granted It is our responsibility to give them the best possible future Pavis is 18 and is from Afghanistan He also flees without his parents and arrives in Germany via Iran Greece and Turkey He has been in treatment for a year and shows Steffi homemade photos Pavis speaks German and English and feels perfectly at home in Hamburg He has found his smile again and is one of 280 patients treated annually by Steffi Graf's Hamburg team