Anett Pötzsch (later Witt, now Rauschenbach, born 3 September 1960) is a German former

figure skater Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. It was the first winter sport to be included in the Olympic Games, when contested at the 1908 Olympics in London. The Olympic disciplines are me ...

. She is the 1980 Olympic champion, two-time

World champion A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

(1978, 1980), four-time European champion (1977–1980), and five-time East German champion (1976–1980).

Career

Pötzsch represented the GDR (East Germany) in the ladies events at international championships. Her first coach was Brigitte Schellhorn. After Pötzsch was admitted into a sports academy,

Gabriele Seyfert Gabriele "Gaby" Seyfert (later Rüger, then Messerschmidt, now Körner, born 23 November 1948) is a German former figure skater. She is a two-time World champion (1969, 1970), and the 1968 Olympic silver medalist. She is the first lady to suc ...

was assigned as her coach and later, Seyfert's mother, Jutta Müller, took over coaching duties. She was the

Olympic Champion This article includes lists of all Olympic medalists since 1896, organized by each Olympic sport or discipline, and also by Olympiad. Medalist with most medals by sport Summer Olympic sports Winter Olympic sports A. Including military patrol e ...

in 1980 and

world champion A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

in 1978 and 1980. She also won the European title four times, from 1977 to 1980; and the East German title five times, from 1976 to 1980. In 1981, she announced her retirement, saying in 2011, "I had knee problems and I was not motivated because I had reached all my goals" but she said she later regretted her decision. Pötzsch was a judge at international skating events in the late 1980s but the ISU banned her after she appeared in ''Skates of Gold'' shows and Katarina Witt's film, Carmen. The ISU restored her eligibility in 1994, along with that of professional skaters. In the 1990s, Pötzsch worked at a bank but quit her job in 1999 in order to coach. She coaches in Chemnitz, Germany, and in 2004 became an ISU technical specialist. Her students include

Daniel Dotzauer Daniel Dotzauer (born 23 September 1991 in Chemnitz) is a German figure skater. He is the 2010 senior national bronze medalist and 2006–08 junior national champion. Dotzauer represented Germany at the 2010 World Junior Championships and rea ...

, the 2010 German Championships bronze medalist, and

Sandy Hoffmann Sandy Hoffmann (born 16 April 1993) is a German former competitive figure skater. She has one senior international medal, bronze at the 2012 Warsaw Cup, and is the 2013 German national bronze medalist. Career Hoffmann was coached by Evelyn Gu ...

Personal life

Pötzsch was born in

Karl-Marx-Stadt Chemnitz (; from 1953 to 1990: Karl-Marx-Stadt , ) is the third-largest city in the Germany, German States of Germany, state of Saxony after Leipzig and Dresden. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 28th largest city of Germany as ...

, GDR (today renamed

Chemnitz Chemnitz (; from 1953 to 1990: Karl-Marx-Stadt , ) is the third-largest city in the German state of Saxony after Leipzig and Dresden. It is the 28th largest city of Germany as well as the fourth largest city in the area of former East Germany a ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

). She married Axel Witt, the brother of fellow German figure skater

Katarina Witt Katarina Witt (, ; born 3 December 1965) is a German former figure skater. A two-time Olympic champion, Witt is regarded as one of the greatest ladies' singles figure skaters of all time. Her Laureus profile states "she is remembered most for h ...

, but the couple divorced in 1990. Their daughter, Claudia Rauschenbach, born in 1984, is the 2000 German

pair skating Pair skating is a figure skating discipline defined by the International Skating Union (ISU) as "the skating of two persons in unison who perform their movements in such harmony with each other as to give the impression of genuine Pair Skating a ...

champion with

Robin Szolkowy Robin Szolkowy (born 14 July 1979) is a retired German pair skater. With partner Aliona Savchenko, he is the 2010 and 2014 Olympic bronze medalist, a five-time World champion (2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2014), a four-time European champion (2007 ...

. In 1993, Pötzsch married Axel Rauschenbach, who is the father of her second daughter, Cindy, and stepfather to Claudia.

Results

References

Anett Potzsch at Sports Reference
* various old news papers * personal interview {{DEFAULTSORT:Potzsch, Anett German female single skaters Figure skaters at the 1976 Winter Olympics Figure skaters at the 1980 Winter Olympics International Skating Union technical specialists Olympic figure skaters of East Germany Olympic gold medalists for East Germany Sportspeople from Chemnitz 1960 births Living people Olympic medalists in figure skating World Figure Skating Championships medalists European Figure Skating Championships medalists Medalists at the 1980 Winter Olympics