Erich Hoffmann (cyclist)

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Erich Hoffmann Road cycling
To person
Nickname desert
Date of birth June 10, 1912
date of death May 31, 1990
nation German EmpireGerman Empire German Empire German Empire German Empire Germany FR Germany
Nazi stateNazi state 
German Reich NSGerman Reich (Nazi era) 
Germany 1946Germany 1945 to 1949 
Germany Federal RepublicFederal Republic of Germany 
discipline Train / street
End of career 1950
Last updated: January 8, 2018

Erich "Desert" Hoffmann (born June 10, 1912 in Mittenwalde ; † May 31, 1990 in Berlin ) was a German racing cyclist . He was a professional athlete from 1934 to 1950.

biography

The cycling talent of Erich Hoffmann caught the six-day rider Willy Funda (1906–1988), who was popular in the 1930s , when Hoffmann was riding his bike to work. Funda encouraged Hoffmann, who had already joined the SPD at the age of 15, to join the “Solidarity” cycling and motorists' association in 1931 . In 1932 Hoffmann moved to the Berlin cycling club Derby . In 1934 he decided to earn his living as a professional driver. At the age of 21 he was the youngest German cycling professional. In the years that followed, Hoffmann, who became the Berlin crowd favorite, took part in national and international aviation , standing , track bike , pursuit and road races. Because of its apparent resilience and stamina, it was nicknamed "Desert" by the audience.

At the UCI Road World Championships in Zurich in 1929 , Hoffmann finished eighth in the road race. In 1934 he won the Silesian Street Prize , in 1937 he was second at Berlin-Cottbus-Berlin and in 1943 third in the German standing championship.

When the Second World War broke out, Hoffmann was initially not drafted because of his status as an athlete, but only had to do his military service from 1943. After the end of the war, he continued his career and won the first race on the Werner-Seelenbinder-Kampfbahn in Neukölln in 1946 and came second in Rund um Berlin . In 1948 he became German vice-champion in two-man team driving with Karl Weimer . Hoffmann was seriously injured in a stalker race in Erfurt in 1949, but only three months later he won the race for the Blue Ribbon on the Werner-Seelenbinder-Bahn.

In 1950, Erich "Desert" Hoffmann declared the end of his professional career. At the Golden Wheel in May 1950, he set eight new track records and was the first to exceed the limit of 70 kilometers per hour in this race. In total, he could look back on 500 wins in 2000 races.

Hoffman remained in cycling, first as a bicycle dealer and later as a manufacturer of alloy wheels. He also acted as the sporting director and managing director of the Berlin six-day race in the Sportpalast .

Erich Hoffmann was married to a daughter of the cyclist Oscar Kuschkow (1896–1922), Gerda, and lived in Berlin-Neukölln. He died in Berlin in 1990 at the age of 77.

In 2017 the German Museum of Technology in Berlin organized the exhibition Wüüüst! Erich "Desert" Hoffmann and Berliner Radsport from 1934 to 1950 . The estate of Erich Hoffmann is in the historical archive of the German Museum of Technology.

Palmarès

Victories (selection)

  • 1935: Team race in the Deutschlandhalle
  • 1937: The Giants' Hour in the Deutschlandhalle
  • 1943: Standing championship in Nuremberg
  • 1944: 60 km team race in Magdeburg
  • 1946: Blue ribbon in Berlin-Neukölln
  • 1946: Berlin Grand Prix
  • 1950: Berlin standing championship
  • 1950: Golden Wheel in Berlin

Other races (selection)

literature

  • Wolfgang Helfritsch / Heinz Boehm / Achim Mahling: From the “noodle top” to the “UFO hall”. 120 years of cycling venues in Berlin. Historical and curiosities . Luisenstädtischer Bildungsverein, Berlin 1997.
  • Stefan Paul: Desert! Everyone screamed. Erich Hoffmann and the Werner-Seelenbinder-Kampfbahn . In: District Office Neukölln of Berlin (ed.): Kringeldreher and Strampelbrüder. Cycling in Neukölln . Berlin 1997, p. 22-25 .
  • Werner Ruttkus / Wolfgang Schoppe : Roundabout & Berlin Air. On the trail of the Berlin six-day race . Berlin 2012.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f German Museum of Technology - Desert! Erich "Desert" Hoffmann and Berlin cycling. In: sdtb.de. January 7, 2018, accessed January 8, 2018 .
  2. ↑ Paul, desert! Everyone cried , p. 24.
  3. ↑ Ruttkus / Schoppe, round the roundabout & Berliner Luft , S. 351st
  4. ↑ Technoversum - PM: Desert! Erich "Desert" Hoffmann and Berlin cycling. In: sdtb.de. January 8, 2018, accessed January 8, 2018 .
personal data
SURNAME Hoffmann, Erich
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Hoffmann, desert (nickname)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German racing cyclist
DATE OF BIRTH June 10, 1912
PLACE OF BIRTH Mittenwalde
DATE OF DEATH May 31, 1990
Place of death Berlin