Gerhard Grimmer, a ski legend in the GDR, died two years ago – and was also treated with reverence abroad. But there is also a shadow over his historical achievements.
He is one of the legends of German sports who were perhaps more famous abroad than at home.
On October 9, 2023, two years ago today, Gerhard Grimmer died, whom sports fans in unified Germany have tended to forget today, but who had an exceptional international status during his active days: He was considered the best cross-country skier in Central Europe and the fiercest competitor of the dominant Scandinavians.
Grimmer is a well-known name in the winter sports nation of Norway, where he celebrated two great triumphs at a legendary location – and is in the same row as idols such as Petter Northug or the current cross-country skiing superstar Johannes Hösflot Kläbo.
Like Northug and Kläbo, Grimmer once won the 50-kilometer race on the venerable Holmenkollen. The former GDR athlete was also the only German cross-country skiing individual world champion of the 20th century. However, his legacy is also burdened by the GDR legacy.
The Olympic medal dream remained unfulfilled
Grimmer, born on April 6, 1943 in Katharinaberg in the Sudetenland, which is now in the Czech Republic, developed into a model athlete of the GDR system at the traditional location of Oberhof.
The trained machine fitter won gold twice at the 1974 World Championships in Falun, Sweden – in the relay (4×10 kilometers) and over 50 kilometers; he was the first and for a long time only German individual world champion. It was only Axel Teichmann who took this unique selling point away from him with his victory in 2003 at the World Championships in Val di Fiemme over 15 kilometers.
Grimmer was the first German athlete to win the famous Holmenkollen race in Norway in 1975. A year later he even repeated his sensational victory before ending his career another year later. He also won another five World Cup medals and became GDR champion 17 times.
Gerhard Grimmer at the 1976 Olympics in Innsbruck
Bad luck and mysterious incident at the Olympics
Grimmer was on the starting line at the Winter Olympics three times: in Grenoble in 1968, Sapporo in 1972 and Innsbruck in 1976. At the Olympics, Grimmer was repeatedly unlucky; it was never enough for a medal, partly because illness or injuries set him back several times. The 5th place in Innsbruck over 50 kilometers was his best Olympic result.
At the same Olympic Games, a mysterious incident in the relay race buried the German relay’s medal hopes. Before the handover to Grimmer, teammate Axel Lesser, who was in the lead – the grandfather of ex-biathlete Erik Lesser – fell heavily after a collision with an unknown woman.
The German relay team was unable to finish the race. The inexplicable collision was never explained, but there was much speculation. Axel Lesser and other athletes later expressed the suspicion that the woman was a Soviet carer – because of the political connections between the GDR and the USSR, he should not have spoken about it before the fall of communism, although Lesser assumed that it was an oversight rather than putting forward conspiracy theories.
The GDR past became a burden
Grimmer continued cross-country skiing after his active career. He served as club boss of the ASK Vorwärts Oberhof for nine years and was involved in the Thuringian Ski Association. In 1991 he was elected association president, and between 1991 and 2003 he was also a competitive sports representative at the state sports association.
Gerhard Grimmer 2015 with today’s biathlon co-national coach Jens Filbrich
In 1995, Grimmer resigned as Thuringia’s ski boss after he came under pressure due to discussions about his role in the GDR apparatus: Stasi files show that he was given anabolic steroids in 1971 – it is also noted that the then SED member not only had knowledge of the state doping system after his career, but was also actively involved in its enforcement.
Grimmer still always claimed to have known nothing. The fact that he still pursued a career as an official in post-reunification sports Germany was met with criticism several times. Antje Harvey (née Misersky), 1992 Olympic biathlon champion in Albertville and subjected to reprisals in the GDR because her father did not want to give her doping drugs, called Grimmer’s prominent role in the state sports association in the Berliner Zeitung in 1999 “unbelievable”.
Grimmer spent his twilight years in Seligenthal near Schmalkalden in Thuringia, where he also grew up. He was diagnosed with cancer shortly before his 80th birthday and died a few months later. He left behind his wife and a daughter.
Two years ago, Gerhard Grimmer, a ski legend of the GDR, passed away – and was also treated with reverence abroad. However, his historical achievements are also overshadowed.
He is one of the legends of German sport who was perhaps more famous abroad than at home.
On October 9, 2023, two years ago today, Gerhard Grimmer passed away. Sports fans in unified Germany have mostly forgotten him, but during his active years, he had an exceptional international status: he was considered the best cross-country skier in Central Europe and the fiercest competitor of the dominant Scandinavians.
Grimmer is a well-known name in the winter sports nation of Norway, where he celebrated two major triumphs at a legendary venue – and stands alongside idols like Petter Northug or the current cross-country skiing superstar Johannes Hösflot Kläbo.
Like Northug and Kläbo, Grimmer once won the 50-kilometer race at the venerable Holmenkollen. Furthermore, the former GDR athlete was the only German individual cross-country skiing world champion of the 20th century. However, his legacy is also burdened by the GDR heritage.
The Olympic Medal Dream Remained Unfulfilled
Grimmer, born on April 6, 1943, in Katharinaberg in the Sudetenland, which is now in the Czech Republic, developed into a model athlete of the GDR system at the traditional location of Oberhof.
The trained machine fitter won two gold medals at the 1974 World Championships in Falun, Sweden – with the relay team (4×10 kilometers) and over 50 kilometers. He was the first and long the only German individual world champion. Only Axel Teichmann took this unique selling point away from him with his victory in 2003 at the World Championships in Val di Fiemme over 15 kilometers.
As the first German athlete, Grimmer was able to win the famous Holmenkollen race in Norway in 1975. A year later, he even repeated his sensational victory before ending his career another year later. In addition, he won another five World Championship medals and became a 17-time GDR champion.
Gerhard Grimmer at the 1976 Olympics in Innsbruck
Misfortune and Mysterious Incident at the Olympics
Grimmer stood at the starting line at the Winter Olympics three times: in Grenoble in 1968, in Sapporo in 1972, and in Innsbruck in 1976. At the Olympics, Grimmer repeatedly had bad luck; a medal was never enough, also because illness or injuries repeatedly set him back. The 5th place in Innsbruck over 50 kilometers was his best Olympic result.
At the same Olympic Games, a mysterious incident in the relay race buried the German relay team’s medal hopes. Before the handover to Grimmer, the teammate Axel Lesser – the grandfather of the ex-biathlete Erik Lesser – who was in the lead, fell heavily after a collision with an unknown woman.
The German relay team could not finish the race. The inexplicable collision was never clarified, but there were many speculations. Axel Lesser and other athletes later expressed the assumption that the woman was a Soviet supervisor – because of the political entanglements between the GDR and the USSR, he would not have been allowed to talk about it before the fall of the Wall, although Lesser assumed an oversight instead of conspiracy theories.
GDR Past Became a Burden
Grimmer remained involved in cross-country skiing after his active career. For nine years, he was the club chairman of ASK Vorwärts Oberhof and was involved in the Thuringian Ski Association. In 1991, he was elected president of the association, and between 1991 and 2003, he was also a competitive sports officer at the State Sports Association.
Gerhard Grimmer 2015 with the current biathlon co-national coach Jens Filbrich
In 1995, Grimmer resigned as Thuringian ski chief after coming under pressure due to discussions about his role in the GDR apparatus: Stasi files show that he had been given anabolic steroids in 1971 – it is also noted that the then SED member not only knew about the state doping system after his career, but was also actively involved in its implementation.
Grimmer still always claimed to have known nothing. The fact that he still made a career as an official in post-reunification German sport was repeatedly criticized. Antje Harvey (née Misersky), 1992 biathlon Olympic champion in Albertville and subjected to repression in the GDR because her father did not want to give her doping agents, called Grimmer’s prominent role in the State Sports Association “unbelievable” in the Berliner Zeitung in 1999.
Grimmer spent his twilight years in Seligenthal near Schmalkalden in Thuringia, where he also grew up. Shortly before his 80th birthday, he was diagnosed with cancer and died a few months later. He is survived by his wife and a daughter.