Katarina Witt had a hugely successful career as a figure skater. At the age of 19, Katarina won her first Gold Medal at the 1984 Sarajevo Olympics. Also in the same year, Katarina was the “Female Athlete of the Year” and also won the “Golden Order of Merit for the Fatherland” of the German Democratic Republic. She later won her second Gold Medal at the 1988 Calgary Olympics. Katarina also won four World Championship titles, six European titles, and eight National Champion titles. After the 1988 Olympics, Katarina took a break from skating professionally to tour and to participate in figure skating shows, but she later returned for the 1994 Olympic Games in Lillehammer, Norway. Furthermore, Katarina toured America and Canada for 10 years on “Stars on Ice” and “Champions on Ice.” Later in 1990, Katarina starred in and won an Emmy for her role in the film Carmen on Ice. Also in 1990, Katarina was among the “50 Most Beautiful People in the World” chosen by People Magazine in the United States. Since 1991, Katarina worked as a figure skating expert during the Olympic Games and World Championships for German and American television channels. Additionally, Katarina was inducted into the International Women’s Sports Foundation Hall of Fame in 2005. She was also the subject of the 2013 documentary The Diplomat, which chronicled her rise to glory and her uneasy relationship with the East German authorities, who gave her favorable treatment while keeping her under close surveillance.
Katarina’s rivalry with U.S. figure skater Debi Thomas is one of the reasons for the incredible amount of attention she received. Not only were they two of the best figure skaters of their time, but their rivalry also displayed the tension between the eastern and western blocs. Between 1984 and 1988 Debi and Katarina only skated against each other four times. Debi only won one of those times in 1986 at the world figure skating championships. She was the only skater in the world to beat Katarina between ’84 and ’88. Their rivalry culminated in what is famously known as the Battle of the Carmens. At the 1988 Olympics in Calgary the two were competing against each other in the women’s long performance, but little did they know they had chosen the same song for their routines, Carmen by Georges Bizet. While sixty million viewers watched, both skaters performed underwhelming routines. It ultimately came down to performance. Katarina took the ice first, and while she didn’t deliver an amazing skating routine, she did deliver quite the emotional and dramatic performance. Katarina took home the gold and Debi won the bronze. This was a huge feat for the German Democratic Republic. East Germany saw their athletes as “diplomats in track suits.” They saw sports as an important part of politics and viewed sports as an instrument of power. Athletes were used to popularize the GDR in countries that didn’t recognize the nation. Through their success in sports, the GDR hoped to win international recognition, demonstrate the superiority of socialism, and increase the self confidence of east Germans. Katarina’s defeat over Debi at the ’88 Olympics seemed to do all three of those things. This event was so popular that in 1990 they made a movie about the ordeal called Carmen on Ice, in which Katarina played herself.
Another reason Katarina was internationally recognized was for her daring costumes and her wild life outside of the skating rink, both of which earned her the nickname “Sex on Skates.” Katarina was known for the risky nature of her costumes. During her rigorous routines, she would also flirt with the audience and capture their attention with her revealing outfits. At the ’88 Olympics, Debi Thomas’ coach was worried that the judges would be biased since six of them were male. This eventually led to what is known as the “Katarina Rule.” The International Skating Union declared that skating costumes could not be “excessively theatrical.” Since Katarina often wore very dramatic outfits that pushed the limits of what the rules allowed, many believed this rule was put in place because of her. Furthermore, Katarina is very well known for her feature in Playboy Magazine. After 10 years of being asked to pose for the magazine, Katarina finally took to the beaches of Hawaii to pose nude. The December 1998 issue is only the second in the magazine’s history to sell out, the first being the 1953 edition featuring Marilyn Monroe. Moreover, she was supposedly offered one million dollars for posing for Playboy. Lastly, while her sexuality played a big role in her fame, she was also known for her beauty and is famously known as the “most beautiful face of socialism.”
Nowadays, Katarina writes, creates, performs, and co-produces. After Katarina’s figure skating career ended, she still continued to influence Germany with her other artistic endeavors and her company. She founded the production agency WITH WITT Sports & Entertainment GmbH. This company produces ice shows such as “Divas on Ice”, “Enjoy the Stars”, and “Winter Magic” as live events for Germany and American television. Katarina also regulates various programs on ARD, Pro7, and RTL. Furthermore, Katarina is involved with many charitable activities and even formed the Katarina Witt Foundation in 2005. The Katarina Witt Foundation provides aid for children and teens with disabilities and Katarina was awarded the Blue Heart for her support for children. Later in 2009 in Berlin, Katarina had her acting debut on stage in the play “Everyman” with her role as Amour. Lastly in 2010, Katarina was inducted into the Hall of Fame of German Sports.
Sources:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/witw/articles/2013/08/06/the-diplomat-on-espn-katarina-witt-the-most-beautiful-face-of-east-german-socialism.html
http://sports.jrank.org/pages/5386/Witt-Katarina-With-Gold-Came-Celebrity.html
http://www.biography.com/people/katarina-witt-9535264#professional-pursuits
Rivals: Legendary Matchups That Made Sports History By David Kenneth Wiggins, R. Pierre Rodgers