Meyfarth, Ulrike (1956—)

views updated

Meyfarth, Ulrike (1956—)

West German high jumper. Born on May 4, 1956, in West Germany; grew up in Munich.

Won Olympic gold medals in the high jump in Munich (1972) and Los Angeles (1984).

In the Munich Olympic Games in 1972, a 16-year-old schoolgirl from Köln-Rodenkirchen, West Germany, jumped 2.75 inches higher than she had ever done before, winning a gold medal and equaling the world record at 6′3½″. She was the youngest competitor, male or female, to win an individual Olympic track-and-field event. It took Ulrike Meyfarth 12 more years to have the chance for a second gold. She was eliminated in early qualifying rounds during the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, and the 1980 Games were boycotted. The 6′ Meyfarth turned down modeling offers, stayed in competition, and faced her chief rival Sara Simeoni of Italy in the 1984 Olympics at Los Angeles. Meyfarth cleared 6′7½″ on her first jump, breaking Simeoni's 1980 Olympic record of 6′5½″. Meyfarth was now the oldest woman high-jump winner in Olympic history.

About this article

Meyfarth, Ulrike (1956—)

Updated About encyclopedia.com content Print Article