Thomas Zimmermann (Turner)

Thomas Zimmermann at the beginning of his career at the Artistic Gymnastics Days in Bregenz.

Thomas Zimmermann (born November 10, 1972 in Feldkirch / Vorarlberg ) is an Austrian gymnast .

In 1989 he took part in a world championship in Stuttgart for the first time , and in 2004 he announced his resignation. Thomas Zimmermann invented his own leap , which has been listed as "Zimmermann" in the international Code de Pointage since 2001 .

Success, career

In his 25-year gymnastics career, he won 38 Austrian state championship titles, took part in 13 world and 9 European championships as well as in 23 world cup tournaments. Thomas Zimmermann did gymnastics as a legionnaire at TV Nellingen / Germany, with whom he was promoted to the first German artistic gymnastics league. Between 1999 and 2003 he trained with the Swiss national team in the gymnastics center in Magglingen . During this time he made it to the top of the world on the pommel horse , and in 2002 he was ranked 6th in the world.

Carpenter jump

An international medal placement at world or European championships was denied, but the jump was within reach. In 2001 Thomas Zimmermann was immortalized in the international gymnastics rules, the Code de Pointage . Together with trainer Peter Kotzurek it was possible to invent a new jump and to show it at the Swiss championships in Zuchwil. The rollover over the vaulting table with a double somersault and integrated rotation is still only mastered by very few athletes worldwide. Thomas Zimmermann explained the stress during jump training with Rinke (2005, p. 99) as follows: “The extreme stress of up to eight times one's own weight during landing did not allow more than four to five jumps per day (...) and the entire exercise runs from the jumping board in one and a half seconds. (...) I couldn't afford a single ounce of fatigue, no mental disharmony and no lack of concentration. "

Injury and comeback

Thomas Zimmermann finished 5th on the pommel horse at the 2002 World Cup final in Stuttgart.

Thomas Zimmermann had made the international specialist scene curious. When he wanted to show his jump at the EM 2002 in Patras (GR), it failed. The consequences: a serious knee injury and from then on he only showed the "carpenter" in training. Despite the injury, he made a comeback , in 2003 he participated in his 13th World Cup in Anaheim (USA) before he announced his resignation in 2004.

In the Vorarlberger Turnverband (Vorarlberger Turnerschaft / VTS) Thomas Zimmermann enjoys a high reputation due to his successes and his exemplary appearance - an important annual VTS youth competition is named after him: the Zimmermann Cup. In 2000, Thomas Zimmermann was voted "Vorarlberg Sportsman of the Year" by the Vorarlberg sports journalists.

Web links

Commons : Thomas Zimmermann  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

literature

Rinke, Doris: run-up, somersault, carpenter. The unparalleled career of an Austrian gymnast. Hecht Verlag, Hard 2005