Balian Buschbaum (born 14 July 1980 in Ulm) is a former
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 ...
pole vault
Pole vaulting, also known as pole jumping, is a track and field event in which an athlete uses a long and flexible pole, usually made from fiberglass or carbon fiber, as an aid to jump over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the Myc ...
er.
Life and career
Buschbaum competed in women's pole vaulting before his
gender transition
Gender transition is the process of changing one's gender presentation or sex characteristics to accord with one's internal sense of gender identity – the idea of what it means to be a man or a woman,Brown, M. L. & Rounsley, C. A. (1996) ''True ...
, winning the title of German Youth Champion multiple times. In 1999 Buschbaum became the German pole vault champion, later that year setting the German record for pole vault with a height of 4.42 m, beating his previous junior world record of 4.37 m. His personal best is 4.70 metres, achieved in June 2003 in Ulm. On 21 November 2007 Buschbaum announced his retirement from the sport due to a persistent injury and the desire to begin
gender reassignment
Gender is the range of characteristics pertaining to femininity and masculinity and differentiating between them. Depending on the context, this may include sex-based social structures (i.e. gender roles) and gender identity. Most cultures u ...
.
In January 2008, Buschbaum announced that his new first name was "Balian", after the blacksmith in the movie ''
Kingdom of Heaven
Kingdom of Heaven may refer to:
Religious
* Kingdom of Heaven (Gospel of Matthew)
**Kingship and kingdom of God, or simply Kingdom of God, the phrase used in the other gospels
* Kingdom of Heaven (Daviesite), a schismatic sect, founded by Will ...
'', and that he would undergo gender affirming surgery later that year.
Buschbaum worked until the end of the indoor 2012–2013 season as a high jump coach in Mainz.
Achievements
All placements are for women's events and prior to his gender transition.
Works
* ''Blaue Augen bleiben blau. Mein Leben. (Blue Eyes Stay Blue. My Life)'' Krüger, Frankfurt 2010, .
* ''Frauen wollen reden, Männer Sex: wie verschieden sind wir wirklich, Herr Buschbaum? (Women Want to Talk, Men Want Sex: How Different are we Really, Mr. Buschbaum?)'' Fischer Taschenbuch, Frankfurt 2013, .
See also
*
Germany all-time top lists - Pole vault
References
External links
Official website (in German)*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Buschbaum, Balian
1980 births
Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Olympics
European Athletics Championships medalists
German male pole vaulters
German LGBT sportspeople
LGBT track and field athletes
Living people
Olympic athletes of Germany
Transgender men
Transgender sportsmen
21st-century LGBT people
Sportspeople from Ulm