Margit Schumann (14 September 1952 – 11 April 2017) 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 ...

luge A luge () is a small one- or two-person sled on which one sleds Supine position, supine (face-up) and feet-first. A luger begins seated, propelling themselves initially from handles on either side of the start ramp, then steers by using the Ca ...

r who competed during the 1970s and early 1980s and was the 1976 Olympic Champion and four-time World Champion. Competing in three

Winter Olympics The Winter Olympic Games (), also known as the Winter Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were held i ...

, she won two medals in the women's singles event, a gold in

1976 Events January * January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 18 – Full diplomatic ...

and a bronze in

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, ...

. Schumann also won four consecutive gold medals at the

FIL World Luge Championships The FIL World Luge Championships, part of the International Luge Federation (FIL) have taken place on an almost annual basis in non-Winter Olympics years since 1955. These championships are shown for artificial tracks. See FIL World Luge Natural ...

(

1973 Events January * January 1 – The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 14 - The 16-0 19 ...

– 75,

1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...

). Her number of championships would not be matched until Sylke Otto (also

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

) won it in

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

, and

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

. At the

FIL European Luge Championships The FIL European Luge Championships, part of the International Luge Federation (FIL) have taken place since 1914. From 1914 to 1934, these championships were part of the Internationaler Schlittensportsverband (ISSV - International Sled Sport Federa ...

, Schumann won five medals with three golds (

–

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 – Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

), one silver (

), and one bronze (

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...

). A sixth place at the

1980 Winter Olympics The 1980 Winter Olympics, officially the XIII Olympic Winter Games and also known as Lake Placid 1980, were an international multi-sport event held from February 13 to 24, 1980, in Lake Placid, New York, United States. Lake Placid was elected ...

at Lake Placid concluded her career as a competitor, and she moved on to study Sports Sciences at the Academy for Physical Culture in

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

, in order to become a specialist trainer in sports sledding. She then began work at Oberhof coaching juniors before she became an

team selector. After this she took a civilian job with the army. Following reunification in 1990 she took a position as a Personnel specialist with the military Sports Promotion group at Oberhof. Later the Military commissariat posted her to their Psychological Section at Zella-Mehlis. In 2004, Schumann was among the first three inductees into the

International Luge Federation The International Luge Federation (French language, French: ''Fédération Internationale de Luge'' (FIL); German language, German: ''Internationaler Rennrodelverband'') is the main international federation for all luge sports. Founded by 13 nat ...

(FIL) Hall of Fame, along with Klaus Bonsack and Paul Hildgartner. Schumann died on 11 April 2017 in Oberhof at the age of 64.

References

External links

FIL-Luge.org January 7, 2004 Hall of Fame induction.
*.
Hickoksports.com results on Olympic champions in luge and skeleton.Hickok sports information on World champions in luge and skeleton.

SportQuick.com information on World champions in luge
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schummann, Margit 1952 births 2017 deaths People from Waltershausen Sportspeople from Bezirk Erfurt German female lugers Lugers from Thuringia Olympic lugers for East Germany East German female lugers Lugers at the 1972 Winter Olympics Lugers at the 1976 Winter Olympics Lugers at the 1980 Winter Olympics Olympic medalists in luge Olympic gold medalists for East Germany Olympic bronze medalists for East Germany Medalists at the 1976 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 1972 Winter Olympics Recipients of the Patriotic Order of Merit in gold 20th-century German sportswomen