Rita Kirst

Rita Kirst (born Schmidt, born October 21, 1950 in Great Grimsby ) is a former track and field athlete from the German Democratic Republic (GDR). 1968 and 1972 they were each Olympic Fifth.

Career

International Championships

Your first start at international championships was in 1968 in the European hall playing in Madrid. Rita Schmidt won the title with 1.84 meters and eight centimeters ahead of the next four jumpers. In the fall of 1968, she took part in the Olympic Games in Mexico City. For a medal you had to jump over 1.80 meters, Rita Schmidt was fifth with 1.78 m. In 1969 she won with 1.82 m at the European Indoor Games in Belgrade; at the same height to the Bulgarian Jordanka Blagoewa Schmidt won because she had skipped the winning height at the second attempt, the Bulgarian until the third attempt. At the European Championships 1969 in Athens four athletes jumped over the height of 1.83 m: Milena Rezková and Mária Mračnová from Czechoslovakia, Antonina Lazareva from the Soviet Union and Rita Schmidt. Rezková and Lazareva had mastered 1.83 m in her second attempt, in the jump Rezková won gold. Mračnová and Schmidt had mastered 1.83 m in three attempts, the Czecho Slovakian won bronze because Schmidt already at 1.77 m had a failed attempt.

1970 European indoor games have been replaced by the official European Indoor Championships. The first European Indoor Championships were held on March 14 and 15 take place in 1970 in Vienna, the high jump competition of the women was discharged on the second day. To the delight of the audience, the Austrian Ilona Gusenbauer won with 1.88 m the title, behind it lay three jumpers who had overcome 1.82 m: The Romanian Cornelia Popescu received silver, bronze Schmidt, and Blagoewa finished fourth. A year later at the European Indoor Championships 1971 in Sofia Schmidt finished with 1.76 m in tenth place, its worst result at the level of international championships ever. At the European Championships 1971 in Helsinki Gusenbauer won with 1.87 m in front of the British Popescu and Barbara Inkpen, each 1.85 m, Rita Schmidt finished with 1.83m in fourth place before Miloslava Hübnerová, as the European Champion from 1969 called for Marriage. At the European Indoor Championships in 1972 in Grenoble Rita Schmidt skipped the indoor world record height of 1.90 meters and had six inches ahead of Rita Gildemeister and Blagoewa. The 1972 Olympic Games in Munich were considered in both parts of Germany as well as competition between systems, meant were the political and economic differences. In the high jump but bounced two other systems on each other: the straddle, as it had learned the older jumpers and has been trained especially in East Germany until the 1980s, and invented by Dick Fosbury and 1968 pre- led backward jump flop. The three DDR jumpers all jumped in the straddle. Rita Schmidt as the best finished with 1.85 m in fifth place. Of the three jumpers from the Federal Republic, the two younger ones jumped the flop, the youngest, Ulrike Meyfarth, won with 1.92 m the gold medal.

In November 1972 Rita Schmidt married and went from there as Rita Kirst on. At the European Indoor Championships in 1974 Rosemarie Witschas won with 1.90 m in front of Milada Karbanová from Czechoslovakia and Rita Kirst who had skipped both 1.88 m. At the European Championships 1974 in Rome Rosemarie Witschas won with 1.95 m in front of Milada Karbanová 1.91 m. Was third with national record of 1.89 m, the Italian flop jumper Sara Simeoni, the less failed attempts had as Kirst at the same level of Rita Kirst. Kirsts experiments were accompanied by the audience boos and jeers, while concentrated in Simeoni silence reigned, as the West German journal Athletics traded ..

In 1976, Rita Kirst part in their last international championships. At the European Indoor Championships in Munich she won with 1.83 m in eighth place, at the Olympic Games in 1976 ranged 1.78 m in qualifying not for the final.

International Results at a Glance

• European Indoor Games gold with 1.82 m
• Fourth European Championships with 1.83m

• European Indoor Championships bronze with 1,82 m

• European Indoor Championships Tenth 1.76 m
• Fourth European Championships with 1.83m

• European Indoor Championships gold with 1.90 m
• Olympic Games fifth with 1.85 m

• European Indoor Championships bronze with 1,88 m
• Fourth European Championships with 1.89m

• European Indoor Championships Eighth at 1.83 m

Championships of the GDR

Rita Schmidt won from 1967 to 1972 six East German championship title in a row. In 1975, she won one more title as Rita Kirst, 1973, 1974 and 1976, they were each second behind Rosemarie Witschas, and after the marriage behind Rosemarie Ackermann.

In the hall Rita Schmidt won in 1968, 1969, 1970 and 1972; In 1971, she finished second behind Karin Schulze. In 1974 she won as Rita Kirst still a championship title in the hall, in 1975 and 1976, she was second behind Rosemarie Ackermann.

Bests and records

Rita Kirsts bests were 1.92 m and 1.90 m in the hall outside.

In July 1967 Rita Schmidt hired the DDR record by Karin Rüger 1.76 m. On May 11, 1968 Rita Schmidt and Karin Schulze ( - Rüger ) occurred in Leipzig against each other, on both jumped 1,78 m and Rita Schmidt also managed a jump over 1.80 meters. On June 1, 1968, both launched in Sofia and asked Rita Schmidt's record of 1.80 m, a; in the further course of the competition mastered both 1.83 m, Schmidt jumped even 1,85 m and 1,87 m. Karin Schulze had surpassed the previous record by three centimeters GDR and was at the end of the competition with their best performance back four inches behind the GDR record.

In May 1972, Rita Schmidt jumped in Leipzig 1.90 m and a year later they created this record as a Rita Kirst. 1974 improved Rosemarie Witschas first to 1.91 m, in the course of the season, they grew to the world record of 1.95 m.

Rita Schmidt's record of 1.76 m 1967 to 1.90 m were simultaneously pan- German records, Ulrike Meyfarth she released on September 4, 1972 with the world record of 1.92 m as a pan- German record holder from, Meyfarth was the first of the Federal Republic of originating total German record holder in the high jump since Ingrid Beckers 1.71 m in 1961.

Add Rita Schmidt's record streak in 1968 in Sofia presented each GDR record, an improvement of the junior world record dar. In the hall you enter three world records with 1.88 m, 1.90 m and 1.92 m in 1974.

Private

Rita Schmidt married in November 1972 the decathlete Joachim Kirst, European champion in the decathlon in 1969 and 1971. 's Brother, the vaulter Edgar Kirst, married 1976, the high jumper Jutta herb sausage, which in 1980 won the Olympic bronze medal as Jutta Kirst.

Rita Schmidt launched until 1972 for the SC DHfK Leipzig, after marriage began Rita Kirst for the forward ASK Potsdam. At a height of 1.75 m her competition weight was 62 kg. In the becoming public knowledge after the fall of documents on doping in the GDR was found in the doped athletes also the name of Kirst.