Dörte Thümmler

Dörte Thümmler (born 29 October 1971) is a German former artistic gymnast who competed for East Germany. In 1987, she was World Champion on the uneven bars (tied with Daniela Silivaș), and she won bronze in the team event at the 1988 Summer Olympics.

Career Thümmler began ice skating at age four and wanted to train in figure skating. However, her mother, a youth gymnastics coach, enrolled her in gymnastics instead. She moved to a boarding school at age 8 to train more intensively.

As a gymnast, Thümmler experienced verbal and physical physical abuse; one of her early coaches was banned from competition after nearly breaking her neck. In addition, from the age of about 11, she was experimented on as part of the East German doping program without her knowledge. Her stepfather, Manfred Thümmler, was head of sports medicine at SC Dynamo Berlin and a defendant in a 1999 doping trial, though his charges were dropped.

Thümmler competed for the club SC Dynamo Berlin.

She competed at the 1987 European Championships, where she was 15th in the all-around but won bronze in the uneven bars final. Later that year, at the 1987 World Championships, she earned a perfect 10 score on the uneven bars and won gold, which she shared with Daniela Silivaș. Her victory was considered a surprise.

The next year, Thümmler won bronze with the East German team at the 1988 Summer Olympics. She also reached the uneven bars final, where she was fourth, and the floor exercise final, where she was 8th.

Thümmler's career was ended that year at the age of 16 from back pain.