Erika Zuchold (''née'' Barth; 19 March 1947 – 22 August 2015) was an

East German East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from its formation on 7 October 1949 until its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on 3 October 1990. Until 1989, it was generally vie ...

gymnast Gymnastics is a group of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, artistry and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, sh ...

who competed at the European, World, and Olympic level from the mid-1960s to early 1970s. She and Karin Janz were the two most significant (in terms of medals won at major championships) female German gymnasts of the era, leading the East German team to a bronze medal at the 1968 Olympics and a silver medal at the 1972 Olympics. The highlight of Zuchold's career came at the 1970 World Championships, where she placed second in the individual all-around behind the Soviet

Ludmilla Tourischeva Ludmilla Ivanovna Tourischeva ( Russian: Людми́ла Ива́новна Тури́щева; also transliterated as Ludmilla Turischeva, Ludmilla Tourischcheva, and Ljudmila Turichtchieva, born 7 October 1952) is a former Russian gymnast, U ...

and returned to win gold on both vault and balance beam in event finals. Zuchold is credited as being the first woman to perform a back handspring on balance beam in World or Olympic competition (at the 1966 World Championships), as well as one of the first two women, along with Věra Čáslavská at the 1968 Olympics, to complete a front handspring on balance beam. She also had a transition element named after her on uneven bars. In her post-gymnastics career, she was a

trapeze A trapeze is a short horizontal bar hung by ropes, metal straps, or chains, from a ceiling support. It is an aerial apparatus commonly found in circus performances. Trapeze acts may be static, spinning (rigged from a single point), swinging or ...

artist, a curator, an educator, and an abstract painter. In 2005, she was inducted into the

International Gymnastics Hall of Fame The International Gymnastics Hall of Fame, located in Oklahoma City, USA, is a hall of fame dedicated to honoring the achievements and contributions of the world's greatest competitors, coaches and authorities in artistic gymnastics. The early IG ...

. She was married to the cyclist Dieter Zuchold (1937–2014).

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Zuchold, Erika 1947 births 2015 deaths People from Lucka German female artistic gymnasts Olympic gymnasts for East Germany East German female artistic gymnasts Gymnasts at the 1968 Summer Olympics Gymnasts at the 1972 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists for East Germany Olympic medalists in gymnastics World champion gymnasts Medalists at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships Gymnasts from Thuringia Medalists at the 1972 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1968 Summer Olympics Olympic bronze medalists for East Germany Recipients of the Patriotic Order of Merit in gold German emigrants to Paraguay Sportspeople from Bezirk Gera

See also

References

External links