Lutz Hoffmann (30 January 1959 – 5 December 1997) was an

East German 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 ...

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 ...

and Olympic

silver medal A silver medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of, or plated with, silver awarded to the second-place finisher, or runner-up, of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc ...

ist.

Early life and training

He began gymnastics training at the age of five. Beginning in 1976, he trained with the

SC Dynamo Berlin The Sports Club Dynamo Berlin was an East German sports club that existed from 1954 to 1991. It was the largest sports club of SV Dynamo, the sports association of the security agencies. The club was disbanded after German reunification and even ...

. His younger brother

Ulf Hoffmann Ulf Hoffmann (born 8 September 1961) is a retired German gymnast. He missed the 1984 Summer Olympics due to their boycott by East Germany and took part in the Friendship Games instead, winning a silver medal in the team competition. He won anoth ...

was likewise an Olympic gymnast. In their youth, they shared a boarding school room during their time with SC Synamo Berlin.

Career

In 1979 Hoffmann became GDR champion in the

floor exercise In gymnastics, the floor is a specially prepared exercise surface, which is considered an apparatus. It is used by both male and female gymnasts. The gymnastics event performed on the floor is called floor exercise. The English abbreviation for t ...

and finished second 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 world championships in the same year his team finished fourth. Next year they won a silver medal at the

1980 Summer Olympics The 1980 Summer Olympics (russian: Летние Олимпийские игры 1980, Letniye Olimpiyskiye igry 1980), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad (russian: Игры XXII Олимпиады, Igry XXII Olimpiady) and commo ...

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

. At those games, Hoffmann was seventh all-around and sixth on the floor. He won a bronze medal in the parallel bars at the 1981 European championships.Turnen – Europameisterschaften Herren
sport-komplett.de

Later life and death

After retiring from competitions he worked as gymnastics coach and then became a teacher in

Bad Sachsa Bad Sachsa is a town in the Göttingen (district), district of Göttingen, in Lower Saxony, Germany. The town was one of the few municipalities in West Germany that imported electric power from former East Germany. This was done via Neuhof Substat ...

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 ...

, where he committed suicide in 1997.

References

External links

* * 1959 births 1997 suicides 1997 deaths People from Weißenfels People from Bezirk Halle German male artistic gymnasts Sportspeople from Saxony-Anhalt Olympic gymnasts for East Germany East German male artistic gymnasts Gymnasts at the 1980 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists for East Germany Olympic medalists in gymnastics Medalists at the 1980 Summer Olympics Recipients of the Patriotic Order of Merit in bronze Suicides in Germany 20th-century German people SC Dynamo Berlin athletes {{Germany-artistic-gymnastics-bio-stub