Sylvia Gerasch (born 16 March 1969) is a former swimmer who 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

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 ...

Career

Gerasch was fifteen years old when she participated in the 1983 European Championships and placed second behind

Ute Geweniger Ute Geweniger (later Strauß, born 24 February 1964) is a former breaststroke and medley swimmer who was a leading member of the East German swimming team in the 1980s. She won two Olympic gold medals, in the 100 m breaststroke and ...

in the 100 m and 200 m breaststroke. In the subsequent European championships she won her first international title in the 100 m breaststroke. Due to the boycotted the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, she participated in

Friendship Games The Friendship Games, or Friendship-84 (russian: Дружба-84, ''Druzhba-84''), was an international multi-sport event A multi-sport event is an organized sporting event, often held over multiple days, featuring competition in many differ ...

, in which she won the gold medal and set a world record for 1 minute 08.29 seconds in 100 m breaststroke. At the

1986 World Aquatics Championships The 1986 World Aquatics Championships took place in M86 Swimming Center in Madrid, Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' ( ...

, she won the 100 m breaststroke and the 4×100 m medley relay, together with teammates

Kristin Otto Kristin Otto (; born 7 February 1966) is a German Olympic swimming champion. She is most famous for being the first woman to win six gold medals at a single Olympic Games, doing so at the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games.

Kathrin Zimmermann Kathrin Zimmermann (born 22 December 1966 in Gera) is a former backstroke swimmer from East Germany who won a silver medal in the 200 m backstroke at the 1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Gam ...

and

Kornelia Gressler Kornelia Greßler (born 9 November 1970), usually spelled Kornelia Gressler in English, is a retired East German swimmer who won three medals at the 1985 European Aquatics Championships: gold in the 4×100 m medley relay and gold in the 100 m ...

. In October 1986, she was awarded a

Star of People's Friendship The Star of People's Friendship (german: Stern der Völkerfreundschaft), Star of Nations' Friendship, was an order awarded by the German Democratic Republic German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Ge ...

in gold (second class) for her sporting success. Her first and only Olympic appearance was at the

2000 Sydney Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from ...

, where she competed for a unified

and finished eighth in the 100 m breaststroke; she was also part of the fourth-place German 4×100 m medley relay team.

Doping

Dieter Lindemann was accused of giving Gerasch anabolics when she was thirteen years old. Gerasch claimed that Lindemann gave her pink tablets which she did not take. She claimed that some competitors put the tablets in the aquarium, and that the female fish became more colourful like the male ones. Following a test at the

European Sprint Swimming Championships 1993 The 1993 European Sprint Swimming Championships were held in Gateshead, United Kingdom, from 11 to 13 November. The championships were organised by the Ligue Européenne de Natation (LEN), with events held in a short course pool. Only the 50&n ...

in Gateshead in November 1993, Gerasch was suspended in January 1994 for two years for having 16 mg of

caffeine Caffeine is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant of the methylxanthine class. It is mainly used recreationally as a cognitive enhancer, increasing alertness and attentional performance. Caffeine acts by blocking binding of adenosine to ...

, equivalent to six cups of coffee, in her blood compared to the permitted limit of 12 mg. The German Swimming Association shortened the suspension for national competitions. In November 1995, the compulsory ban for caffeine was reduced from two years to three months, and in Autumn 2003, caffeine was removed from the list of banned substances.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gerasch, Sylvia 1969 births Living people Sportspeople from Cottbus German female swimmers German female breaststroke swimmers Doping cases in swimming German sportspeople in doping cases World record setters in swimming World Aquatics Championships medalists in swimming European Aquatics Championships medalists in swimming Swimmers at the 2000 Summer Olympics