Alfred Schwarzmann

Champion gymnast and paratrooper Karl Alfred Markus Schwarzmann was born on March 23, 1912. Schwarzmann joined the 13th Company of the Nuremberg Infantry Regiment on April 1, 1935 after signing up for a twelve year period of service. Alfred won three gold medals and two bronze medals at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, Germany. Moreover, Schwarzmann was an army sports instructor at the Army Sport School in Wunsdorf and served in the 1st Parachute Regiment during World War II. Alfred and his regiment parachuted into the Netherlands and took a key bridge at Moerdijk on May 10, 1940. During the first hour of fighting Schwarzmann was seriously wounded when a bullet pierced his lung; he was treated for his wounds at Dordrecht after the Dutch capitulation. Alfred subsequently saw action in the Horaklion area in the Battle of Crete and fought on the Eastern Front from 1941 to 1942. Schwarzmann became commander of the headquarters of the 7th Air Division in March, 1943. He later held this same position with the 1st Parachute Division. Alfred surrendered on May 9, 1945. During his service as a paratrooper Schwarzmann was awarded the Iron Cross in both 1st and 2nd Class on May 25, 1940; a Wound Badge in Black on May 29, 1940; and a Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on May 29, 1940. At age forty Alfred competed in all the artistic gymnastics events and won a silver medal on the horizontal bar at the 1952 Olympic games. Schwarzmann died at age 87 on March 11, 2000. He was inducted into Germany's Sports Hall of Fame in 2008.