Bettina SCHMIDT

Bettina Schmidt grew up in a sporting family, as her father was a very successful handball coach. She herself started as a breaststroke swimmer, changed to the shot put, and then in 1974 began lugeing. In 1978, Schmidt won a silver at the European Championships, and repeated that finish at the Worlds in 1981, winning the World Championship in 1982. After 1984, Cerstin Schmidt, no relation, replaced her on the East German national team. Bettina Schmidt later married, has two children and works as a coach for the Tobogganing Federation of Northrhine-Westfalia.