Maxi Herber was a German

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 figure skater

Figure skating

Figure skating is an Olympic sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform spins, jumps, footwork and other intricate and challenging moves on ice skates. Figure skaters compete at various levels from beginner up to the Olympic level , and at local, national, and international competitions...

 who competed in pair skating

Pair skating

Pair skating is a figure skating discipline. International Skating Union regulations describe pair teams as consisting of "one lady and one man." The sport is distinguished from ice dancing and single skating by elements unique to pair skating, including overhead lifts, twist lifts, death spirals,...

 and single skating

Single skating

Single skating is a discipline of figure skating, wherein a single person skates alone. Men's singles and ladies' singles are both Olympic disciplines and are both governed by the International Skating Union. The other Olympic figure skating events are pair skating and ice dancing...

. She became Olympic pair champion with Ernst Baier

Ernst Baier

Ernst Baier was a German figure skater who competed in pair skating and single skating. He became Olympic pair champion in 1936 together with Maxi Herber. The duo also won several World and European championships.Ernst Baier skated for the club Berliner SC...

 at the 1936 Winter Olympics

1936 Winter Olympics

The 1936 Winter Olympics, officially known as the IV Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1936 in the market town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Bavaria, Germany. Germany also hosted the Summer Olympics the same year in Berlin...

. The duo revolutionized pair skating

Pair skating

Pair skating is a figure skating discipline. International Skating Union regulations describe pair teams as consisting of "one lady and one man." The sport is distinguished from ice dancing and single skating by elements unique to pair skating, including overhead lifts, twist lifts, death spirals,...

, becoming the first team to perform jumps

Figure skating jump

Figure skating jumps are a major element of competitive figure skating. Different jumps are identified by the take-off edge and the number of revolutions completed. There are six kinds of jumps currently counted as jump elements in ISU regulations.-Technique:...

 side by side.

Born in Munich

Munich

Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...

, Herber was also an accomplished single skater, winning the German nationals three times, from 1933 to 1935. She skated for the Münchner EV (Munich EV) club.

Herber and Baier married after their skating career ended in 1940. They had 3 children. After World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 they skated in ice shows. Later the couple owned a business. In 1964 they were divorced. As a result of the divorce, she had to depend on social services to survive. Supported by the “Deutsche Sporthilfe” (German Sport help organisation) she moved to Oberau

Oberau

Oberau is a municipality in the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, in Bavaria, Germany....

 near Garmisch-Partenkirchen

Garmisch-Partenkirchen

Garmisch-Partenkirchen is a mountain resort town in Bavaria, southern Germany. It is the administrative centre of the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, in the Oberbayern region, and the district is on the border with Austria...

 in Bavaria

Bavaria

Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...

. Some years later Herber and Baier remarried, but were divorced again.

Herber suffered from Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system...

. In 2000 she moved to the Lenzheim retirement home in Garmisch-Partenkirchen. Soon afterwards she had an exhibition of her watercolor

Watercolor painting

Watercolor or watercolour , also aquarelle from French, is a painting method. A watercolor is the medium or the resulting artwork in which the paints are made of pigments suspended in a water-soluble vehicle...

 paintings there. She died at age 86 in Garmisch-Partenkirchen

Garmisch-Partenkirchen

Garmisch-Partenkirchen is a mountain resort town in Bavaria, southern Germany. It is the administrative centre of the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, in the Oberbayern region, and the district is on the border with Austria...

; Herber had been Germany's oldest living female Olympic champion.

Results

(ladies singles)

Event	1933	1934	1935	1936	1937	1938
World Championships World Figure Skating Championships The World Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union in which elite figure skaters compete for the title of World Champion...		7th
European Championships European Figure Skating Championships The European Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition in which figure skaters compete for the title of European Champion...			4th	7th		4th
German Championships German Figure Skating Championships The German Figure Skating Championships are a figure skating national championship held annually to determine the national champions of Germany. Skaters compete in the disciplines of men's singles, ladies singles, pair skating, and ice dancing....	1st	1st	1st			2nd

(pairs with Ernst Baier

Ernst Baier

Ernst Baier was a German figure skater who competed in pair skating and single skating. He became Olympic pair champion in 1936 together with Maxi Herber. The duo also won several World and European championships.Ernst Baier skated for the club Berliner SC...

)

Event	1934	1935	1936	1937	1938	1939	1940	1941
Winter Olympic Games Winter Olympic Games The Winter Olympic Games is a sporting event, which occurs every four years. The first celebration of the Winter Olympics was held in Chamonix, France, in 1924. The original sports were alpine and cross-country skiing, figure skating, ice hockey, Nordic combined, ski jumping and speed skating...			1st
World Championships World Figure Skating Championships The World Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union in which elite figure skaters compete for the title of World Champion...	3rd		1st	1st	1st	1st
European Championships European Figure Skating Championships The European Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition in which figure skaters compete for the title of European Champion...		1st	1st	1st	1st	1st
German Championships German Figure Skating Championships The German Figure Skating Championships are a figure skating national championship held annually to determine the national champions of Germany. Skaters compete in the disciplines of men's singles, ladies singles, pair skating, and ice dancing....	1st	1st	1st		1st	1st	1st	1st