As a shot put
87-year-old Germans takes part in the World Cup
03/18/2025 – 2:19 p.m.Reading time: 2 min.
Sport is just something for young people? Incorrect. Because the 87-year-old Leonide Baum wants to push six meters at the World Cup in Florida.
It is never too late for a fresh start. This was also the thought of the 87-year-old Leonide Baum from Gadebusch in the Northwest Mecklenburg district. Because she decided to take part in a world championship again as a shot put woman – now the time has come.
How did it come about? After a shoulder injury 13 years ago, Baum no longer thought of competitions until she and her daughter Jana Müller-Schmidt visited the senior citizens’ World Cup in Gothenburg last summer. There was a 100-year-old participant from India.
That impressed the 87-year-old-and her daughter also motivated her: “Hey mom, who is 100, you are 87, that’s nothing,” Baum later recalled. Since then she has been training almost every day – but not on a regular sports facility. Since there is no official shot put ring in Gadebusch, the former teacher improvised without further ado. With chalk, she marked a downring on a small dirt road and thus created her own training center in the middle of nature.
On Thursday, Baum travels to Florida with her daughter. Jana Müller-Schmidt wants to win her tenth World Cup title there. She would again dedicate this success to her late father Karl-August Baum, who had supported her with training tips until shortly before his death in April 2023 and was a successful athlete. The medals obtained and the ball of her father are now on his grave in Gadebusch.
For Leonide Baum itself, the focus is on a different goal: she wants to push the ball to six meters. It will be shown whether she succeeds. At the German indoor championships in Frankfurt, she recently took second place-a strong performance for her premiere as a shot put competition.
In the meantime, Baum has not only celebrated sporting successes, but also discovered a new passion. “I feel really wonderful,” she says. Her oldest grandson said to her: “Grandma, if you want to be good, you have to burn for the matter.” Baum is convinced: “I think I’m burning for it now.”