Harry Glaß

Harry Glass ( born October 11, 1930 in Klingenthal; † 14 December 1997 Rodewisch ) was a German ski jumper. He won a bronze medal in ski jumping at the Winter Olympics 1956 in Cortina d' Ampezzo, the first Olympic medal for the GDR. In addition to Helmut Recknagel and Werner Lesser he was one of the first three ski jumpers of the GDR, the mitsprangen in the world rankings.

Life

The son of a shoemaker learned after visiting the elementary school from 1946 to 1950 also the profession of shoemaker. From 1950 he worked as Hauer in the uranium mining Wismut, from 1954 as a shooting champion. First, football player, he began in 1952 in parallel with the ski jumping training at the former SC Dynamo Klingenthal. Later he completed a sports professional studies.

Since 1956 he was a member of the German People's Police, his last rank was major of the VP.

Sports career

As part of the preparations for the Nordic World Ski Championships in Falun, Sweden, in the GDR athletes were allowed to go to the starting line for the first time, also Glaß was appointed in 1953 in the East German national team. And the season 1953/54 started promisingly. He won as the New Year's 1954 in Oberhof.Anfang February Glaß was then nominated for the banns to Nordic World Ski Championships. There, however, he only reached 64th place of 69 participants in the special jumping. A week later, however, won the DDR Glaß ski jumping championships in Oberhof, his first DDR titles. In April 1954 he joined the sports club development Klingenthal. The GDR had begun their top athletes in sports clubs to konzentrieren.In the following season Glaß could defend his East German champion. Behind him came while the aspiring 17-year old Helmut Recknagel to second place. The first real warning sign after the botched World Cup sat Glaß in Oberstdorf ski flying week in late February 1955. A top international field, he finished in the standings to fifth place. In general, the GDR jumpers enormous progress has been certified under coach Hans Renner in the 1954/55 season. This was also acknowledged by the East German government. In October 1955 Harry Glaß and Werner Lesser received the title of Master of Sports.

The following season 1955/56, culminating with the Winter Olympics in February 1956 in the Italian Cortina d'Ampezzo. It was clear the GDR athletes were the first to participate in an all-German team in the Games. However, deciding on the composition of the inner German Olympic team trials competition. For ski jumping doing a jump in Oberhof on December 28, 1955 and the first three Jumping Four Hills Tournament 1955/56 were provided. In Oberhof Glaß finished second behind Max Bolkart. In the Four Hills Tournament, however, now with the world's best in competition, Glaß surprised the experts. A third place to kick off in Oberstdorf was followed by two second places in Garmisch and Innsbruck. He led after three competitions of the tour at the overall standings. In the domestic rankings he was well in front, before Max Bolkart. Just because you wanted to train before the Olympics even traveled from the still nominated in Innsbruck Olympic squad and took on so in Bischofshofen not participate. Thus Glaß remained an overall victory in the later so prestigious Four Hills Tournament denied. A few weeks later Glaß traveled with the all-German team to the Olympic Games in Cortina d' Ampezzo. Ski jumping was doing on the last day of the Games, held on 5 February 1956. After the training services on site Glaß, Werner Lesser, Max Bolkart and Joseph Kneisl were nominated for the competition. And Glaß made ​​after the first passage in the lead for a big surprise. However, it did not hold this position in the second round. He still had the Finns Antti Hyvärinen and Aulis Kallakorpi go by, even though he only had half a point distance to the silver medal. Nevertheless, Harry Glaß Historical reached. With the bronze medal in ski jumping, he won the first Olympic medal for an athlete from the GDR. Max Bolkart fourth place and Werner Lesser eighth place rounded out the good German result, only Josef Kneisl with number 26 fell short of expectations. After this performance, the jump competition at the VII DDR winter sports championships in Oberhof was awaited with great anticipation. On the Thüringenschanze Glaß pointed at his third GDR Champion title with a new hill record of 77 m his teammates Werner Lesser to second place. Third was Helmut Recknagel. In the aftermath Glaß still participated in some ski jumping part of the waning season, including the ski jumping at Kulm or the Ski Games in Zakopane, without it being possible to win a competition. However, the last competition of the Olympic season on the domestic Vogtland hill in Klingenthal could then win in front of his teammates and all time rival Werner Lesser Glaß. The performances of the two ski jumpers have been honored by this successful Olympic season by the state again. Glaß and Lesser received on August 2, 1956 Title Honored Master of Sports

The post-Olympic season 1956/57, was started with an opening event in Upper Wiesenthal on December 27, 1956. This should also serve as the initial assessment for the subsequent Four Hills Tournament. Glaß came up with the 14th Place. Then we went to Oberstdorf, for the first competition of the Four Hills Tournament. This Glaß finished good eighth place. There followed a rather disappointing 24th place in Innsbruck, again an eighth place in Garmisch, and to conclude a seventh place in Bischofshofen. This meant the end in the overall standings at Glaß ' first full tour in fifth place, one place behind teammate and rival Werner duration Lesser. But then Glaß could not mitspringen very front, while the young Helmut Recknagel made ​​more and more attention. He won as the ski flying in Planica week. Even the East German winter sports championships in Thuringia Brotterode Glaß had to defer to his teammates Lesser and Recknagel. Nevertheless Glaß made ​​in March 1957 even for a bang. When internationally renowned jumping from the Feldberg ski jump Glaß won the competition with a never given up to that attitude score of 59.5 out of 60 possible points. In 1958 he achieved a fourth place finish at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Lahti. He was also in the years 1954, 1955, 1956 and 1958 DDR champion. In 1960 he suffered a serious fall in the Four Hills Tournament on the Bergiselschanze, a year later he attempted a comeback. This attempt was unsuccessful.

From 1960 to 1964 was Glaß member of the Presidium and 1964-1988 only ordinary member of the national executive DTSB. From 1962 to 1980 he worked as a coach. In 1982, he suffered a heart attack. In 1988 he was retired because of disability.

1958 Glaß was honored for his sporting achievements with the Patriotic Order of Merit in bronze.

The former ski jumper Henry Glaß is neither related nor related by him.