Everyone always used to say how much pressure her rivals were under (competing for the world championships whilst studying at school for example) but how much pressure is it to be told to win if you wanted your freedom. Fabulous to see the early footage of her more technical prowess of 2F 3T combination and 3F
Katarina.. wanted to be an actress. She didn't get much success. Then..she missed the Attention do she posed Nude for Playboy. Then..she came back in 94 with sloppy, unchallenging programs. Her "pressure" was to Not get attention.
She was in Ronin and Jerry McGuire as well as Carmen on Ice and in the theatre in Berlin. She didn’t pose for Playboy until 1998 and she skated in shows until 2008, so how do you figure out she wasn’t very good?
@@nicolesays3360 During the 1994 Winter Olympics I Didn't want Tonya Harding to win & She's from My Hometown of Portland Oregon. I'm glad Katarina Witt came ahead of Tonya Harding. I did got to see Katarina Witt on Stars on Ice tour in January 1996. Unfortunately I saw Her at a Distance My Dad didn't get front row seats. 😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁
Of course she would praise GDR at some point, and she should have, cause truthfully she was benefit from the system. What she said was true and you cannot blame her for that. Back in the time, as a super top notch skater, she can fully focus on training, not to worried about the money. Of couse there was no freedom back then, but it was a perfect system for those who were fully supported by the government. Nothing is all good, but nothing is all bad as well. She used to benefit from the system as an athlete, and later she can enjoy the freedom right after she retired in 88. She enjoyed both, dealing with all the goods and bads, which is really lucky.
It's similar to the former USSR system. The athletes including figure skating benefitted from the support, despite the political situation. It also brings about memories of the period when the USSR ended, and it was a confusing time for the athletes. Suddenly they seemed lost because that "safety net" system was gone.
@@alexsdb9712what do you mean ? Like, what was life life after an athlete finished their career? Do they still have a house, food , money given by the government?
@JuneBug_87 I recommend reading about the former USSR and their sports system, if you're not familiar about it. Also, is English your first language or not? It's the world wide web so there's lots of different languages and some may not completely understand. People have to be more upfront and honest about what their main language is, so that no time and effort is wasted. There is also the age group of a person online - sometimes they don't know because of their age group or they didn't read or research about something on their own. When the USSR ended, it left a lot of questions and confusion with their athletes, coaches and programs. Some even feared what would happen to them, because in the "free market/free world", an athlete is more on their own in terms of support or funding. The communist countries of Europe tended to share a similar approach to athletics and their sports programs. Native/first language: English
The funniest story is when she met Donald Trump around 1990, when she was on tour in the USA. He wanted to date her and gave her his phone number, but she threw it away. The next time they met, he was like: „You are the first woman I gave my number to and who never called me!“ And she replied: „Well, someone has to be first“. A journalist heard that conversation and found it funny, and she published it in a big newspaper. Of course, Donald Trump was furious. He made up a story how she tried to date him and how she harassed him 🤣🤣🤣 She shared the story in her autobiography. A few months ago, I saw Kati in a TV talk show, where she told the story again. So hilarious 😆
If Katarina Witt Married Donald Trump She Could Have Been FIRST LADY . She would have been the Sexiest First Lady of All Time . 😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅 @therealconniefrancis
Katarina Witt was and still me the best. She had everything a figure skater can die for. People should never compare then and now. Then there was still compulsary figures where they practiced for 3 hours plus free skating. Nowadays, it's all free skating. I bet if she was born today, she will still be the champ.
Growing up in East Germany myself, I couldn´t agree more with Katarina that having experienced both systems is a major advantage. You can appreciate the upsides more, and you are more aware of the downsides as well. Being able to compare is priceless.
SHE WAS PRIVILEGE , IT WAS NOTHING POSITIVE THERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THANK YOU . for the Freedom NOW , NEVER KOMUNIST SYSTEM AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! KAMILLA S .ZECH
@Wiktor Suworow the people I know that talk like you always live in all white neighborhoods, and went to all white schools, and only have white friends. They seem to mainly hate lower class white people.
@@willnill7946 hate white poor people? what are u even talking about it’s true that the us doesn’t have healthcare, quality public education sucks in some states, racism is still big and your police and military kill people of color. the us isn’t the great place people think it is
Those were "double-triple" combos. Double Lutz/ Triple Toe. She could land them in the early to mid 80s. Triple/ Triple combos done by women was still nowhere near common. Midori Ito was credited as the first woman to do one in like 1984. Nobody else caught up to that for a long time.
She was a lot better than many others at that event. She was not as technical but apart from Tonya & Josee who finished 8th & 9th respectively, the rest of the females past 9th were not the best. There were many who just did many singles!It is sad though that the pro's were allowed to come back that yr. Otherwise Maria Kielmann would've been going.
I don't think it's fair to say they were sloppy programs. I think she knew she had to go more than she was used to, given the passage of time. In her short, she may have only done a Triple Toe Loop combo as opposed to a Triple Lutz, which a medalist would need. However, even if you look at it from the present ISU points system, a 3T is 4.1 points. A 3Lz is 5.9. Less than 2 points -- and everything else she did was on par. Her combo, if you view it again, would have had a HUGE GOE given the speed going in, speed coming out and the height she achieved. No other combo in that Olympics looked as effortless. She very well could have ranked higher under the new system. As for her long, she made an unfortunate number of errors in a program that still became iconic. A double Salchow early on. She forced out a 3 Loop midway, a jump she hadn't competed in 7 years at that point. The fall on the second Salchow was an attempt to rectify the first -- that jump wasn't planned in the closing seconds of the program. She displayed that, despite not having the jumping prowess of the others (and who from the 88 Olympics still did?), she was a fighter who was going to put it ALL out there. Perhaps there she was sloppy, but she was firing on all cylinders at an age most skaters had settled into an obscurity of easy jumps on the tour circuit.
@@danniifan3115Marina already had 2 Olympics, herself, under her belt. She was never a contender. On her best days, her Lutz and Flip were short on rotation and landed very forward. She had a lot of opportunity herself and should feel accomplished for her two top 10 Olympic finishes, but the likelihood of her doing better than Witt in Lillehamer was non existent. Kielmann's programs were unsophisticated and often featured music that seemed like it chosen and edited at random. I've never heard of anyone else skating to the soundtrack of "Interview With a Vampire" with a section of "Mister Sandman" spliced in (she did this in 1996) but that's how Kielmann did all her programs. No continuity or reason to her music and she skated over it, not TO it. Witt at least could get increased ratings and win over the audience with proper choreography.
She knew she had no chance. She just went there for a unified Germany and for Sarajevo. She is 28 years old and out of competition for a very long time.
I think he refers to the system itself which made sports a national priority, and international success in sports a matter of political pride. It meant that talent scouts monitored children in schools and sports clubs, selected the best and most promising children and invested a lot into their training and promotion. Being such a talent meant a huge burden (high expectations, super intense training, personal sacrifices) but also lots of privileges. Katarina´s analogy (talking about her trainer) "she cracked the whip but at the same time she was so nice" says it all. Steroids were likely used in the GDR but then again, they are likely used in most other countries as well, more or less subtly.
@@heidi7151 Oh there was no "accusing" it was fact - those women were all on steroids & some of them even turned into MEN - full blown balding men but were insulted when asked if they should give their medals back - unbelievable.
She never escaped. She wanted the freedom to travel and enjoyed her trips to the USA, but she still lives in the eastern part of Germany. She was just a young woman woman who enjoyed live, and she never really cared about politics. In Germany, she still gets heavily criticized because she speaks so highly about the German Democratic Republic. People call her a leftist. No irony involved.
In common with most American right wingers you either don't have the foggiest notion of what communism/socialism is or of what people in the center and to the left of democratic politics believe in. That's because you get your information on what others think from the likes of Fox News who are not trying to inform you but trying to convince you.
@@mathildewesendonck7225 The communist regimes were ruined by corruption, oppression and lack of individual freedom and initiative. But those of us who actually lived in communist countries will tell you that not everything was bad. Just as, although we appreciate our new freedoms, we recognise that not everything is good in the capitalist systems. It think it would be ungrateful of Katarina Witt to ignore the support the DDR state gave her to become what she did.
I never really did like her, I guess because I had relatives in east germany, and just felt she was a mouth piece of the communist regime. Of course what would I do if I was in her place.
Was sind Sie für ein Idiot. Laufen Sie erst mal einen Meter in unseren Schuhen. Sie haben keine Ahnung wie es in der DDR war. Ich möchte sie nicht wieder haben, aber es gab auch viel Gutes. Unser Bildungssystem war 1000 Mal besser als das Westdeutsche. Den politischen Mist hätte ich nicht gebraucht. Aber als ich in die Schule kam, konnte ich alles was ich dafür brauchte. (Ich konnte für 55 Pfennig Mittag essen, heute kostet ein Mittagessen zwischen 5 und 7,50 €.) Das kann man heute nicht mehr von den Kindern behaupten. Die rennen mit 4 Jahren im Kiga noch mit Windeln rum usw.. Ich arbeite ehrenamtlich für einen Verein, der Schulkinder mit einem Frühstück versorgt. Ich mache das total gerne, könnte aber kotzen, weil der Verein in so einem reichen Land nötig ist. Also ziehen Sie nicht pauschal über Menschen eines Landes her, von dem Sie keine Ahnung haben.
How? She’s one of the humblest down to earth people inspite of all the success she has achieved. Even Toller Cranston said she was so down to earth it wasn’t even funny.
She is humble at the moment but before the wall came down in 1989 she always had an arrogant attitude when speaking of the old DDR she defends that regime vehemently when speaking to the western press, I thought she was very hyprocritical at the time.
Everyone always used to say how much pressure her rivals were under (competing for the world championships whilst studying at school for example) but how much pressure is it to be told to win if you wanted your freedom. Fabulous to see the early footage of her more technical prowess of 2F 3T combination and 3F
Katarina.. wanted to be an actress. She didn't get much success. Then..she missed the Attention do she posed Nude for Playboy. Then..she came back in 94 with sloppy, unchallenging programs. Her "pressure" was to Not get attention.
She was in Ronin and Jerry McGuire as well as Carmen on Ice and in the theatre in Berlin. She didn’t pose for Playboy until 1998 and she skated in shows until 2008, so how do you figure out she wasn’t very good?
@@PhilAlumb don't think its attention. She was and is just a woman that is to me unapologetic, strong and sexy. She doesn't minced words.
I remember that Katarina said she was grateful to her country, even though she knew she was under scrutiny.
I loved Katarina as a child (I was a champion roller skater) even tho I am Aussie she took my breath away!
When I was a kid, my mom rooted for Katarina so passionately that I just assumed she was skating for USA.
Same. Makes sense now.
@@nicolesays3360 During the 1994 Winter Olympics I Didn't want Tonya Harding to win & She's from My Hometown of Portland Oregon. I'm glad Katarina Witt came ahead of Tonya Harding. I did got to see Katarina Witt on Stars on Ice tour in January 1996. Unfortunately I saw Her at a Distance My Dad didn't get front row seats.
😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁
Or because she saw Katarina as more American than Debi Thomas. Americans almost never rooted for communist athletes in this Reagan era.
Best believe she loved Debi Thomas too.
I wonder why ?😒
A skater who took command of the ice and all those practicing . Amazing to witness.
She's so DAMN beautiful!😍
Yep still is .. and great legs 😍
When I was a young man I had a Huge crush on Kateina Witt.🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
Of course she would praise GDR at some point, and she should have, cause truthfully she was benefit from the system. What she said was true and you cannot blame her for that.
Back in the time, as a super top notch skater, she can fully focus on training, not to worried about the money. Of couse there was no freedom back then, but it was a perfect system for those who were fully supported by the government.
Nothing is all good, but nothing is all bad as well. She used to benefit from the system as an athlete, and later she can enjoy the freedom right after she retired in 88. She enjoyed both, dealing with all the goods and bads, which is really lucky.
Pragmatism is undervalued these days.
It's similar to the former USSR system. The athletes including figure skating benefitted from the support, despite the political situation. It also brings about memories of the period when the USSR ended, and it was a confusing time for the athletes. Suddenly they seemed lost because that "safety net" system was gone.
@@alexsdb9712what do you mean ? Like, what was life life after an athlete finished their career? Do they still have a house, food , money given by the government?
@JuneBug_87 I recommend reading about the former USSR and their sports system, if you're not familiar about it. Also, is English your first language or not? It's the world wide web so there's lots of different languages and some may not completely understand. People have to be more upfront and honest about what their main language is, so that no time and effort is wasted. There is also the age group of a person online - sometimes they don't know because of their age group or they didn't read or research about something on their own. When the USSR ended, it left a lot of questions and confusion with their athletes, coaches and programs. Some even feared what would happen to them, because in the "free market/free world", an athlete is more on their own in terms of support or funding. The communist countries of Europe tended to share a similar approach to athletics and their sports programs.
Native/first language: English
@@alexsdb9712 So, I take that as a no?
The funniest story is when she met Donald Trump around 1990, when she was on tour in the USA. He wanted to date her and gave her his phone number, but she threw it away. The next time they met, he was like: „You are the first woman I gave my number to and who never called me!“ And she replied: „Well, someone has to be first“.
A journalist heard that conversation and found it funny, and she published it in a big newspaper. Of course, Donald Trump was furious. He made up a story how she tried to date him and how she harassed him 🤣🤣🤣
She shared the story in her autobiography. A few months ago, I saw Kati in a TV talk show, where she told the story again.
So hilarious 😆
I hope thats true because such a passionate woman would or should never date someone like donald trump.. it'd be a shame
If Katarina Witt Married Donald Trump She Could Have Been FIRST LADY . She would have been the Sexiest First Lady of All Time .
😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅
@therealconniefrancis
Katarina Witt was and still me the best. She had everything a figure skater can die for. People should never compare then and now. Then there was still compulsary figures where they practiced for 3 hours plus free skating. Nowadays, it's all free skating. I bet if she was born today, she will still be the champ.
What year was this talk show here?
Love how she talks about the positives of East Germany.
😐
Growing up in East Germany myself, I couldn´t agree more with Katarina that having experienced both systems is a major advantage. You can appreciate the upsides more, and you are more aware of the downsides as well. Being able to compare is priceless.
SHE WAS PRIVILEGE , IT WAS NOTHING POSITIVE THERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THANK YOU . for the Freedom NOW , NEVER KOMUNIST SYSTEM AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! KAMILLA S .ZECH
@Wiktor Suworow the people I know that talk like you always live in all white neighborhoods, and went to all white schools, and only have white friends. They seem to mainly hate lower class white people.
@@willnill7946 hate white poor people? what are u even talking about
it’s true that the us doesn’t have healthcare, quality public education sucks in some states, racism is still big and your police and military kill people of color. the us isn’t the great place people think it is
Kati is so eine wunderschöne Lady, danke für das Video
Imagine that, Katarina landing a triple-triple combination in practice. She never even attempted one in competition.
Those were "double-triple" combos. Double Lutz/ Triple Toe. She could land them in the early to mid 80s.
Triple/ Triple combos done by women was still nowhere near common. Midori Ito was credited as the first woman to do one in like 1984. Nobody else caught up to that for a long time.
I didn't agree with her coming back to the 1994 Olympics with those sloppy, unchallenging, easy programs. But..she is a Real Champion.
She was a lot better than many others at that event. She was not as technical but apart from Tonya & Josee who finished 8th & 9th respectively, the rest of the females past 9th were not the best. There were many who just did many singles!It is sad though that the pro's were allowed to come back that yr. Otherwise Maria Kielmann would've been going.
I don't think it's fair to say they were sloppy programs. I think she knew she had to go more than she was used to, given the passage of time.
In her short, she may have only done a Triple Toe Loop combo as opposed to a Triple Lutz, which a medalist would need. However, even if you look at it from the present ISU points system, a 3T is 4.1 points. A 3Lz is 5.9. Less than 2 points -- and everything else she did was on par.
Her combo, if you view it again, would have had a HUGE GOE given the speed going in, speed coming out and the height she achieved. No other combo in that Olympics looked as effortless. She very well could have ranked higher under the new system.
As for her long, she made an unfortunate number of errors in a program that still became iconic. A double Salchow early on. She forced out a 3 Loop midway, a jump she hadn't competed in 7 years at that point. The fall on the second Salchow was an attempt to rectify the first -- that jump wasn't planned in the closing seconds of the program. She displayed that, despite not having the jumping prowess of the others (and who from the 88 Olympics still did?), she was a fighter who was going to put it ALL out there. Perhaps there she was sloppy, but she was firing on all cylinders at an age most skaters had settled into an obscurity of easy jumps on the tour circuit.
@@danniifan3115Marina already had 2 Olympics, herself, under her belt. She was never a contender. On her best days, her Lutz and Flip were short on rotation and landed very forward. She had a lot of opportunity herself and should feel accomplished for her two top 10 Olympic finishes, but the likelihood of her doing better than Witt in Lillehamer was non existent. Kielmann's programs were unsophisticated and often featured music that seemed like it chosen and edited at random. I've never heard of anyone else skating to the soundtrack of "Interview With a Vampire" with a section of "Mister Sandman" spliced in (she did this in 1996) but that's how Kielmann did all her programs. No continuity or reason to her music and she skated over it, not TO it. Witt at least could get increased ratings and win over the audience with proper choreography.
Katarina witt das legende deutschland und europa wie heidi klum😊😊
Beautiful woman
Indeed she is! God I love German women! Germany here I come baby!❤😍🇩🇪
Великолепная фигуристка своего времени-два золота Олимпиад кряду 1984, 1988.Лиллехаммере 1994 не получилось.Тренер Ю.Мюллер (СК Карл-Маркс Штадт)
She knew she had no chance. She just went there for a unified Germany and for Sarajevo. She is 28 years old and out of competition for a very long time.
Can someone explain what he means by “East German sport has been satirised in this country”?
They were accused of using steroids, especially the women.
Heidi Kleindienst ah ok, thanks
I think he refers to the system itself which made sports a national priority, and international success in sports a matter of political pride. It meant that talent scouts monitored children in schools and sports clubs, selected the best and most promising children and invested a lot into their training and promotion. Being such a talent meant a huge burden (high expectations, super intense training, personal sacrifices) but also lots of privileges. Katarina´s analogy (talking about her trainer) "she cracked the whip but at the same time she was so nice" says it all.
Steroids were likely used in the GDR but then again, they are likely used in most other countries as well, more or less subtly.
@@vanessas2454 they were used extensively in the GDR, they kept records of it all.
@@heidi7151 Oh there was no "accusing" it was fact - those women were all on steroids & some of them even turned into MEN - full blown balding men but were insulted when asked if they should give their medals back - unbelievable.
must of been nice not to show your papers to get into a dining area or a movies
She speak good english
She dated Richard Dean Anderson (MacGyver) for a while.
Oh, the irony........... Witt appearing on a pro-socialist/communist television program that Witt escaped from (socialism/communism).
She never escaped. She wanted the freedom to travel and enjoyed her trips to the USA, but she still lives in the eastern part of Germany. She was just a young woman woman who enjoyed live, and she never really cared about politics.
In Germany, she still gets heavily criticized because she speaks so highly about the German Democratic Republic. People call her a leftist.
No irony involved.
@Douguinho the GDR wasn‘t a social democracy...
@Death2PC spot on!
In common with most American right wingers you either don't have the foggiest notion of what communism/socialism is or of what people in the center and to the left of democratic politics believe in. That's because you get your information on what others think from the likes of Fox News who are not trying to inform you but trying to convince you.
@@mathildewesendonck7225 The communist regimes were ruined by corruption, oppression and lack of individual freedom and initiative. But those of us who actually lived in communist countries will tell you that not everything was bad. Just as, although we appreciate our new freedoms, we recognise that not everything is good in the capitalist systems. It think it would be ungrateful of Katarina Witt to ignore the support the DDR state gave her to become what she did.
Great Playboy layout!! Gold medal body!
I never really did like her, I guess because I had relatives in east germany, and just felt she was a mouth piece of the communist regime. Of course what would I do if I was in her place.
Was sind Sie für ein Idiot. Laufen Sie erst mal einen Meter in unseren Schuhen. Sie haben keine Ahnung wie es in der DDR war. Ich möchte sie nicht wieder haben, aber es gab auch viel Gutes. Unser Bildungssystem war 1000 Mal besser als das Westdeutsche. Den politischen Mist hätte ich nicht gebraucht. Aber als ich in die Schule kam, konnte ich alles was ich dafür brauchte. (Ich konnte für 55 Pfennig Mittag essen, heute kostet ein Mittagessen zwischen 5 und 7,50 €.) Das kann man heute nicht mehr von den Kindern behaupten. Die rennen mit 4 Jahren im Kiga noch mit Windeln rum usw.. Ich arbeite ehrenamtlich für einen Verein, der Schulkinder mit einem Frühstück versorgt. Ich mache das total gerne, könnte aber kotzen, weil der Verein in so einem reichen Land nötig ist. Also ziehen Sie nicht pauschal über Menschen eines Landes her, von dem Sie keine Ahnung haben.
Nice German accent!!!
I bet she doesn't vote democrat
Good.
@@PhilAlumbFU
She is kind of rude.
😳🤔🤨 how so?
How? She’s one of the humblest down to earth people inspite of all the success she has achieved. Even Toller Cranston said she was so down to earth it wasn’t even funny.
She is humble at the moment but before the wall came down in 1989 she always had an arrogant attitude when speaking of the old DDR she defends that regime vehemently when speaking to the western press, I thought she was very hyprocritical at the time.