Hermine Schröder (née Wüst; 12 February 1911 – 9 August 1978) was a German
track and field athlete who competed mainly in the
shot put
The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. The shot put competition for men has been a part of the modern Olympics since their revival in 1896, and women's ...
. She was the gold medallist in the event at the
European Athletics Championships in 1938 and set her personal best of that same year.
Born in
Ludwigshafen
Ludwigshafen, officially Ludwigshafen am Rhein (; meaning " Ludwig's Port upon Rhine"), is a city in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, on the river Rhine, opposite Mannheim. With Mannheim, Heidelberg, and the surrounding region, it form ...
, she became a member of the
VTV Mundenheim 1883 club and rose to national prominence in the early 1930s, having a runner-up finish in the shot put at the
German Athletics Championships in 1931 (behind
Grete Heublein
Margarete "Grete" Heublein (29 January 1908, in Barmen – 2 March 1997, in Wuppertal) was a German track and field athlete who competed in the discus throw, shot put and the 100 metres
The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a s ...
), before taking national titles in 1932 and 1933. The event was dropped from the national programme in 1935 in line with the
Olympic programme of the time, and was only restored in 1937. From 1934 to 1939 Schröder was the second ranked shot putter in Germany behind
Gisela Mauermayer (who had won shot put gold at the
1934 Women's World Games
The 1934 Women's World Games (french: 4è Jeux Féminins Mondiaux) were the fourth edition of the international games for women. The tournament was held between 9–11 August at the White City Stadium in London, United Kingdom. and discus gold at the
1936 Summer Olympics
The 1936 Summer Olympics (German: ''Olympische Sommerspiele 1936''), officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad (German: ''Spiele der XI. Olympiade'') and commonly known as Berlin 1936 or the Nazi Olympics, were an international multi-sp ...
).
In spite of her regularly placing second in domestic competition, she frequently led the world on performance and was the number one ranked shot putter from 1932 to 1933 and again from 1935 to 1939. German women led the event during this period, with Heublein and Mauermayer being the ones to disrupt her reign.
[Hermine Schröder]
Track and Field Brinkster. Retrieved on 2015-12-28. In her sole major international outing she edged Mauermayer to the gold medal at the
1938 European Athletics Championships
The 2nd European Athletics Championships was a continental athletics competition for European athletes which was held in two places in 1938. The men's event took place in Paris, France between 3–5 September while the women's events were in Vien ...
by two centimetres to become the first ever European women's champion in the event.
European Championships (Women)
GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2015-12-28. She ranked within the world top ten in 1940 and 1941, but upon entering her thirties her career came to a close during World War II.[
]
Personal bests
*Shot put
The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. The shot put competition for men has been a part of the modern Olympics since their revival in 1896, and women's ...
: (1938)
* Discus throw: (1935)
National titles
* German Athletics Championships
**Shot put: 1932, 1933
International competitions
See also
* List of European Athletics Championships medalists (women)
References
__NOTOC__
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schroder, Hermine
1911 births
1978 deaths
Sportspeople from Ludwigshafen
Athletes from Rhineland-Palatinate
German female shot putters
German female discus throwers
European Athletics Championships medalists