 During Autumn of 2007, the team managed to take home second place at the European Rowing Championships in Poznań after taking a long break from the sport.In 2008, Schmidt rowed with Fokke Beckman at the World Cup opener in Munich in the coxless pair and at the end of the season was nominated to row for the German eight in the U23 World Championship, in which the team placed fourth.During this time, the positioning of the German eight boat was reorganised prior to the 2008 Olympic Games, Schmidt was nominated as a substitute for Beijing.