Gunda Niemann-Stirnemann (née Kleemann, born 7 September 1966) is a
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
former
speed skater
Speed skating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors race each other in travelling a certain distance on skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marathon speed skating. ...
. She is a three-time Olympic gold medallist, winning the 3000 metres in 1992 and 1998 and the 5000 metres in 1992. She won a total of eight Olympic medals.
Personal life
Born as Gunda Kleemann in
Sondershausen
Sondershausen is a town in Thuringia, central Germany, capital of the Kyffhäuserkreis district, situated about 50 km north of Erfurt. On 1 December 2007, the former municipality Schernberg was incorporated by Sondershausen.
Until 1918 it ...
,
Bezirk Erfurt
The Bezirk Erfurt was a district (''Bezirk'') of East Germany. The administrative seat and the main town was Erfurt.
History
The district was established, along with the other 13, on 25 July 1952, substituting the old German states. After 3 Octob ...
,
East Germany
East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...
, she has lived in
Erfurt
Erfurt () is the capital and largest city in the Central German state of Thuringia. It is located in the wide valley of the Gera river (progression: ), in the southern part of the Thuringian Basin, north of the Thuringian Forest. It sits i ...
for most of her life. She changed her name to Gunda Niemann after her marriage in 1991 to
judoka
is an unarmed modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponica, "Judo"). ...
Detlev Niemann. After their divorce in 1995, she kept the name Niemann. She then changed her name to Niemann-Stirnemann after marrying her long-time
Swiss
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* the adjectival form of Switzerland
* Swiss people
Places
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*Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports
*Swiss Internation ...
manager Oliver Stirnemann on 11 July 1997. The speed skating oval in Erfurt, the Gunda-Niemann-Stirnemann-Halle, was named after her. Before the
German reunification
German reunification (german: link=no, Deutsche Wiedervereinigung) was the process of re-establishing Germany as a united and fully sovereign state, which took place between 2 May 1989 and 15 March 1991. The day of 3 October 1990 when the Ge ...
in 1990, she skated for East Germany.
Career
Niemann-Stirnemann dominated women's speed skating for several years, especially on the longer distances. She has competed in four Olympics, from 1988 to 1998, and won eight Olympic medals (3 gold, 4 silver, and 1 bronze). In the nine years from 1991 to 1999, she won the
World Allround Championships every year except 1994. She has a record number of 98
World Cup
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...
single distance victories and has won 19 overall World Cup titles. She was
European Allround Champion 8 times. Over the course of her career, she set 18
world records
A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...
. For her performances, she received the
Oscar Mathisen Award Since 1959, the Oscar Mathisen Award (also known as the Oscar Mathisen Memorial Award, the Oscar Mathisen Memorial Trophy, and sometimes the Skating Oscar) is awarded annually for outstanding speed skating performance of the season. The award was in ...
three times: in 1995, 1996 and 1997.
Niemann-Stirnemann left speed skating in 2001 to give birth to a daughter, but later returned to competition. She planned to make one last comeback and participate in the
2006 Winter Olympics
The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially the XX Olympic Winter Games ( it, XX Giochi olimpici invernali) and also known as Torino 2006, were a winter multi-sport event held from 10 to 26 February 2006 in Turin, Italy. This marked the second t ...
in
Turin
Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...
, but a lingering back injury – which she suffered from since the 2004–05 season – made her quit. At the end of October 2005, a few days before the German Championships, she announced her retirement.
Except for one day in March 1998, Niemann-Stirnemann was number one in the
Adelskalender, the all-time allround speed skating ranking, from 24 January 1993, until 2 March 2001 – a total of 2,958 days. She skated in Olympic, World, World Cup, European and national championships to 215 medals, thereof 163 gold medals.
World records
Over the course of her career, Niemann-Stirnemann skated 18
world records
A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...
:
Note that the 10000 m was suspended as a world record event at the 1953
ISU Congress.
Personal records
To put these personal records in perspective, the last column (''WR'') lists the official world records on the dates that Niemann-Stirnemann skated her personal records.
Niemann-Stirnemann has an
Adelskalender score of 160.167 points. Her highest ranking on the Adelskalender was the first place.
Biography
* Gunda Niemann-Stirnemann: ''Ich Will. Traumkarriere mit Tränen und Triumphen'' (2000). Das Neue Berlin.
External links
Gunda Niemann-Stirnemann at SkateResults.comGunda Niemann-Stirnemann at SpeedSkatingNews(in German)
Gunda Niemann-Stirnemann's personal site (in German)
Photos of Gunda Niemann-StirnemannGunda Niemann-Stirnemann at Olympic.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Niemann-Stirnemann, Gunda
1966 births
Living people
People from Sondershausen
German female speed skaters
Speed skaters at the 1988 Winter Olympics
Speed skaters at the 1992 Winter Olympics
Speed skaters at the 1994 Winter Olympics
Speed skaters at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Olympic speed skaters of East Germany
Olympic speed skaters of Germany
Medalists at the 1992 Winter Olympics
Medalists at the 1994 Winter Olympics
Medalists at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Olympic medalists in speed skating
Olympic gold medalists for Germany
Olympic silver medalists for Germany
Olympic bronze medalists for Germany
World record setters in speed skating
Sportspeople from Thuringia
World Allround Speed Skating Championships medalists