Gerhard Stöck
Encyclopedia
Gerhard Stöck was a German
athlete who competed mainly in the shot put
and javelin throw
.
Gerhard Stöck represented Germany
at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin
, earning a bronze medal
in the shot put and a come-from-behind gold medal
in the javelin throw.
In the shot put, Stöck was out performed by fellow German Hans Woellke
and Finland
's Sulo Bärlund
, who won gold and silver medals respectively. Incidentally, Hans Woellke was the first German to win a gold medal in an Olympic track and field event.
Four days later, in the javelin throw, there was a much more dramatic and favorable outcome in store for Gerhard Stöck. After four rounds of throwing, Stöck found himself in fifth place; inspired by Adolf Hitler
's arrival to the stadium and the wildly cheering fans, Stöck let fly with a tremendous throw of 71.84 meters to cement his championship.
During the Second World War, Stöck was a Lieutenant in the German Army
, and was present at Stalingrad
.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
athlete who competed mainly in the shot put
Shot put
The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" a heavy metal ball—the shot—as far as possible. It is common to use the term "shot put" to refer to both the shot itself and to the putting action....
and javelin throw
Javelin throw
The javelin throw is a track and field athletics throwing event where the object to be thrown is the javelin, a spear approximately 2.5 metres in length. Javelin is an event of both the men's decathlon and the women's heptathlon...
.
Gerhard Stöck represented Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, earning a bronze medal
Bronze medal
A bronze medal is a medal awarded to the third place finisher of contests such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The practice of awarding bronze third place medals began at the 1904 Olympic Games in St...
in the shot put and a come-from-behind gold medal
Gold medal
A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...
in the javelin throw.
In the shot put, Stöck was out performed by fellow German Hans Woellke
Hans Woellke
Hans Otto Woellke was a German athlete who mainly competed in the shot put, who won the gold medal in the men's shot put competition at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany.Hans Woellke was in the Berlin Police force...
and Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
's Sulo Bärlund
Sulo Bärlund
Sulo Richard Bärlund was a Finnish athlete who mainly competed in the shot put.He competed for Finland at the 1936 Summer Olympics held in Berlin, Germany where he won the silver medal in the men's shot put event.Bärlund finished fourth in the 1938 European Championships shot put...
, who won gold and silver medals respectively. Incidentally, Hans Woellke was the first German to win a gold medal in an Olympic track and field event.
Four days later, in the javelin throw, there was a much more dramatic and favorable outcome in store for Gerhard Stöck. After four rounds of throwing, Stöck found himself in fifth place; inspired by Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
's arrival to the stadium and the wildly cheering fans, Stöck let fly with a tremendous throw of 71.84 meters to cement his championship.
During the Second World War, Stöck was a Lieutenant in the German Army
German Army
The German Army is the land component of the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. Following the disbanding of the Wehrmacht after World War II, it was re-established in 1955 as the Bundesheer, part of the newly formed West German Bundeswehr along with the Navy and the Air Force...
, and was present at Stalingrad
Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad was a major battle of World War II in which Nazi Germany and its allies fought the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad in southwestern Russia. The battle took place between 23 August 1942 and 2 February 1943...
.