Thomas Munkelt

Thomas Munkelt was the star of European hurdling in the later 1970s and early 1980s. He came to international attention in 1975 when he won the first of his nine East German championships and also won the European Cup in the 110 high hurdles. Although he finished a disappointing fifth at the 1976 Montréal Olympics, Munkelt won both the World Cup and European Cup in 1977. His first international medal came in winning the high hurdles at the 1978 European Championships. Munkelt’s career highlight came at the 1980 Moskva Olympics, where he won gold, defeating Cuban Alejandro Casañas by 0.01 seconds, although in the absence of American Renaldo Nehemiah, who would have been the overwhelming favorite.

Munkelt defended his title at the 1982 European Championships and won silver as a member of a 4x100 relay team. He again won the European Cup in 1984, but finished only fifth at the first World Championships in 1983. Munkelt won East German 110 m hurdles titles in 1975-80 and 1982-84 and indoor 60 m hurdles titles in 1974, 1976-81, and 1983-84. After East Germany boycotted the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, Munkelt retired from athletics and later worked as a dentist in Kitzscher near Leipzig.

Personal Bests: 100 – 10.37 (1980); 110H – 13.37 (1977).