Klaus Köste (27 February 1943 – 14 December 2012) was a German

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

. He won a gold medal in the

vault Vault may refer to: * Jumping, the act of propelling oneself upwards Architecture * Vault (architecture), an arched form above an enclosed space * Bank vault, a reinforced room or compartment where valuables are stored * Burial vault (enclosure ...

at the

1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and commonly known as Munich 1972 (german: München 1972), was an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. ...

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

. He competed for

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 ...

and won bronze medals in the team all-around event in three Olympics, in 1964, 1968 and 1972. He was particularly strong on the horizontal bar, winning the 1971 and 1973 European championships and a bronze medal at the 1970 World championship in this event. Köste started training in gymnastics at the age of six in

Frankfurt (Oder) Frankfurt (Oder), also known as Frankfurt an der Oder (), is a city in the German state of Brandenburg. It has around 57,000 inhabitants, is one of the easternmost cities in Germany, the fourth-largest city in Brandenburg, and the largest German ...

, but later moved to Leipzig where he lived for the rest of his life. During his career he won 34 national titles, becoming one of the most successful German gymnast, together with

Eberhard Gienger Eberhard Gienger (; born 21 July 1951) is a German politician ( CDU) and former West German gymnast. He competed at the 1972 and 1976 Summer Olympics, winning bronze in the latter. Gymnastics career During his gymnastics career from 1971 to 1 ...

. In 1972 he was awarded the

Patriotic Order of Merit The Patriotic Order of Merit (German: ''Vaterländischer Verdienstorden'', or VVO) was a national award granted annually in the German Democratic Republic (GDR). It was founded in 1954 and was awarded to individuals and institutions for outstanding ...

. He retired from competitions in 1974 due to an

Achilles tendon The Achilles tendon or heel cord, also known as the calcaneal tendon, is a tendon at the back of the lower leg, and is the thickest in the human body. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcaneus (h ...

injury and became a trainer and high school teacher. In 1974–1976 he was the head coach of the East German women’s team and between 1976 and 1985 worked as the chief trainer of SC Leipzig. In parallel he taught sports at DHfK Leipzig. During the period of 1998–2002 he was an assistant to Gustav-Adolf Schur who was when a member of the

Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Commons ...

. He died from a heart failure in 2012.

References

1943 births 2012 deaths Sportspeople from Frankfurt (Oder) People from the Province of Brandenburg Party of Democratic Socialism (Germany) politicians German male artistic gymnasts Olympic gymnasts of the United Team of Germany Olympic gymnasts of East Germany Gymnasts at the 1964 Summer Olympics Gymnasts at the 1968 Summer Olympics Gymnasts at the 1972 Summer Olympics Olympic bronze medalists for the United Team of Germany Olympic gold medalists for East Germany Olympic bronze medalists for East Germany Olympic medalists in gymnastics Medalists at the 1972 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1968 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1964 Summer Olympics Medalists at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships Recipients of the Patriotic Order of Merit in silver European champions in gymnastics {{Germany-Olympic-medalist-stub