DTSB

Deutscher Turn- und Sportbund

Deutscher Turn- und Sportbund

German Gymnastics and Sports Federation


The Deutscher Turn- und Sportbund (DTSB; German Gymnastics and Sports Federation) was a mass organization of the German Democratic Republic from 1957 until shortly after German reunification. Membership in the organization included nearly four million people, which accounted for almost 20% of the population of the GDR.[1]

Quick Facts Formation, Dissolved ...

History

Founded in 1957, the DTSB was the last major mass organization to be created by the East German government, and was the central agency responsible for mass sport. The federation consisted of individual sports associations within the country, ranging from sailing to chess. While it worked in conjunction with the Gesellschaft für Sport und Technik, the DTSB focused more on adult activities, whereas the GST focused on youth activities. The DTSB worked closely with both the Free German Youth and the East German Olympic Committee and had representation in all levels of East German local and state government. The DTSB was charged with both organizing and financing all sporting and fitness activities, associations, and events in the nation, as well as promoting physical education among the masses. It had especially close ties with the ruling Socialist Unity Party and was also designed to promote socialist ideology through sport.[2]

Upon the dissolution of East Germany and reunification with the West, the organization was deprived of funds and the individual sports associations either continued to exist independently or joined their Western counterparts. The DTSB eventually dissolved itself on 5 December 1990.[3]

Sports Associations of the DTSB

More information Name, Acronym ...

Presidents of the DTSB

Rudi Reichert1957–1961
Manfred Ewald1961–1988
Klaus Eichler1988–1990
Martin Kilian1990

See also


References

  1. Deutscher Turn- und Sportbund (DTSB). In: Andreas Herbst; Winfried Ranke; Jürgen Winkler: So funktionierte die DDR. Lexikon der Organisationen und Institutionen. Bd. 1. (Rororo 6348), Rowohlt Taschenbuch Verlag, Reinbek bei Hamburg 1994, ISBN 3-499-16348-9, S. 234–243 (239–243)
  2. Ken Hardman; Roland Naul (26 July 2005). Sport and Physical Education in Germany. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-135-80291-2.
  3. Schilling, Frieder (31 August 2007). "Treue ist gut, totale Kontrolle ist besser". Spiegel (in German). Hamburg: Der Spiegel GmbH & Co. KG. Retrieved 20 February 2022.

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