Georg Thoma

Georg Thoma
Thoma at the 1966 World Championships
Personal information
Born20 August 1937 (1937-08-20) (age 87)
Hinterzarten, Germany
Height167 cm (5 ft 6 in)
Weight68 kg (150 lb)
Sport
SportNordic combined
ClubSC Hinterzarten
Medal record
Representing  Germany
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 1960 Squaw Valley Individual
Bronze medal – third place 1964 Innbruck Individual
Representing  West Germany
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 1966 Oslo Individual

Georg Thoma (German pronunciation: [ˈɡeːɔʁk ˈtoːmaː] ; born 20 August 1937) is a retired German Nordic combined skier and ski jumper. He won a gold medal at the 1960 Olympics, becoming the first non-Scandinavian athlete to do so, and was voted German Sportsman of the Year. At the 1964 Olympics he won a bronze medal and served as the Olympic flag bearer for Germany at the opening ceremony. He further won the world championships title in 1966. Thoma's strength in the Nordic combined was jumping. He was three times German champion in ski jumping (1960, 1961, and 1963). Additionally, he won the Nordic combined at the Holmenkollen ski festival from 1963 to 1966. For his Nordic combined successes, Thoma was awarded the Holmenkollen medal in 1964 (ahared with Veikko Kankkonen, Eero Mäntyranta, and Halvor Næs).[1]

Thoma is the uncle of the ski jumper Dieter Thoma. After retiring from competitions he worked as a postman in his hometown and later as a television commentator. He was one of the first German winter athletes to make his living from sponsorship.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Georg Thoma". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020.
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Awards
Preceded by German Sportsman of the Year
1960
Succeeded by