Heike HENKEL

High jumper Heike Redetzky started at the Olympics under her birth name for West Germany in 1984 (11th) and 1988 (failing to qualify as 13th), but won the gold medal as Heike Henkel in 1992 for the reunified German team, as she was then married to swimmer Rainer Henkel. They later divorced and Heike married decathlete Paul Meier. She started her sports career as a gymnast, trampoline jumper, fencer, and basketball and tennis player, but eventually took up high jumping and started a brilliant career. She was one of the most popular German sportswomen in the 1980s and 1990s.

Besides her Olympic results Redetzky-Henkel was World Champion in 1991 and European Champion in 1990. In her five participations in the European Cup she placed sixth in 1985, third in 1987, fourth in 1989, third again in 1991, and second in 1993. At the World Indoors she won a gold medal in 1991, silver in 1993, and bronze in 1989 and 1995. She also won the European Indoor title in 1990 and 1992, and a silver medal in 1988. Domestically she added 20 West German national titles (both 10 out- and 10 indoor). Her world record of 2.07 stood from 1992 to 2006.

Heike Henkel, later Meier-Henkel received several awards: Luz-Long-Fairness-Prize (1991); Fair Play-Trophy of the Association of German Sports Journalists; Rudolf-Harbig-Gedächtnispreis (1992) (Memorial Award); Sports Badge of North Rhine Westphalia (1990); Silver Bay Leaf; German Sportswoman of the Year (1992); World Track and Field Athlete of the Year (1991); and the German media prize BAMBI (for anti-doping activities).

In 1996, Meier-Henkel successfully completed her studies in graphic design. With a wealth of experiences from her days as a high performance athlete she later gave lectures on various topics such as motivation, success and failure. During her career she spoke frequently on anti-doping topics (“To Be Top without Doping”), and belonged to the board of the national anti-doping agency NADA from 2002-05. Since January 2007, Heike Henkel is a patron of a children's hospice service in Köln (Cologne).

Personal Best: HJ – 2.07i (1992).