Balian Buschbaum

Balian Buschbaum (born 14 July 1980) is a former German pole vaulter.

Life and career Buschbaum competed in women's pole vaulting before his gender transition, winning the title of German Youth Champion multiple times. In 1999 Buschbaum became the German pole vault champion, later that year setting the German record for pole vault with a height of 4.42 m, beating his previous junior world record of 4.37 m. His personal best is 4.70 metres, achieved in June 2003 in Ulm. On 21 November 2007 Buschbaum announced his retirement from the sport due to a persistent injury and the desire to begin gender reassignment. In January 2008, Buschbaum announced that his new first name was "Balian", after the blacksmith in the movie Kingdom of Heaven, and that he would undergo gender affirming surgery later that year.

Buschbaum worked until the end of the indoor 2012–2013 season as a high jump coach in Mainz.

Achievements All placements are for women's events and prior to his gender transition.

Works

Blaue Augen bleiben blau. Mein Leben. (Blue Eyes Stay Blue. My Life) Krüger, Frankfurt 2010. Frauen wollen reden, Männer Sex: wie verschieden sind wir wirklich, Herr Buschbaum? (Women Want to Talk, Men Want Sex: How Different are we Really, Mr. Buschbaum?) Fischer Taschenbuch, Frankfurt 2013.