Falck's two moments in time

Today (11) we celebrate two moments in time for the German middle distance runner Hildegard Falck in the heat of Stuttgart and under the memorable glass roof of Munich’s Olympic Stadium, both which made athletics history.

Fifty years ago, on 11 July 1971, Falck became the first woman to break the two-minute mark in the 800m. Only one year after her world record run, she lived up to expectations to win Olympic gold in Munich, which made her a track legend.

The first of her two great moments happened during tropical heat in Stuttgart during the 1971 German Championships. Falck had spent the night in the cool basement of the Sports Hotel adjacent to the Neckarstadium in a room rented by her shoe sponsor.

In the final the following day, she came out of the last bend with a comfortable lead and kept storming down the home straight with the crowd rising to its feet. When the clock stopped at 1:58.45 everyone immediately knew that they had witnessed a sensation. A world record which had lowered the previous time by an unfathomable two and a half seconds! What followed was a moment of utter disbelief until great excitement broke out amongst the people in the stands.

World record and the wall of cameras

“As I crossed the line I ran into a wall of cameras,” the then 22-year-old runner from VfL Wolfsburg remembers. “That was an amazing feeling.”  

Indeed, her race had opened a new dimension in the world of athletics. She had started out without a set plan for the race, intent on running hard, with no pacemaker (which were not yet common) to support her. To put her performance into perspective: the time would have earned Falck bronze at the 2019 World Athletics Championships in Doha and would have granted her every German Championships title since 1971.

However, a few weeks later the rising star of German athletics came back down to earth. She tripped in the final of the 1971 European Championships in Helsinki, which ruined her chance of gold.

One year later, in preparation for the Olympics, she placed second in the German Championships. Doubts began to bother her and with only a few weeks to go, another sensation seemed far out of reach.

Falck part of German day in Munich 1972

What followed was a moment that an athlete never forgets: the Olympic 800m final and a home crowd. “I was well settled in the middle of the field,” Falck recalls, “then a gap opened up on the home straight and I could dash in front.”

Olympic gold for Germany! Together with gold medals from javelin thrower Klaus Wolfermann and race walker Bernd Kannenberg, that day evolved as the ‘German day’ with a particular significance in the confrontation between East and West Germany.

But Falck, who now lives in Breisach near Freiburg, never saw herself as an element in a political conflict. “It’s the sport that counts, nothing else,” she said.

Falck settled for a modest pay-off for her Olympic victory. In her hometown of Nettelrede the local band of the fire brigade played in her honour. She received a bracelet, six champagne glasses and a 400-German Mark voucher for a fashion store. Her most valuable asset, the medal, is securely locked away in a bank safe.

Friendships with other Olympic contenders 

Falck never complains about missing financial opportunities. She appreciates the manifold experiences the sport allowed her to have and lasting friendships with other Olympic contenders like fellow gold medal winners Heide Rosendahl and Annegret Richter, and silver medallist Rita Wilden. Most precious, of course, was the encounter with her later husband in the Olympic Village in Mexico City in 1968.

The German 800m heroine comes from a humble home. Her success in running never changed her unassuming attitude. When she quit her career at the age of 25 at the peak of her performance level, many regretted her decision. But the young middle-school teacher was more concerned about her work and financial security than her options on the track.

She still runs three times a week and followed the European Championships in Berlin in 2019 from the stands. “I’m happy and grateful,” Falck claims, willingly confirming that her two golden moments have made all the difference in her life.

Falck succeeded another German legend in the 800m

Hildegard Falck-Kimmich succeeded her legendary fellow German Lina Radke, a pioneer in the women’s 800m. Radke set three official world records in 1927 and 1928, bringing the world’s best time down to 2:16.8 in Amsterdam to become Olympic champion.

Ewald Walker for World Athletics Heritage