Tassilo Thierbach

Baeß/Thierbach were coached by Irene Salzmann in Karl-Marx-Stadt (today Chemnitz) and represented the club SC Karl-Marx-Stadt. They were the only figure skating pair representing East Germany to win the World or European championships.

Altogether, Thierbach skated with five partners: Romy Kermer (silver medallist at the Olympic Games with Rolf Österreich in 1976); Antje Heck; Petra Ronge; Sylvia Walter; and finally Sabine Baeß.

Baeß and Thierbach won their first European Championship, a bronze, in 1977 and their first World Championship medal, a bronze, in 1979.^[1] A mistake in the short program took them out of any chance of a medal at the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid however, and they came in fifth overall.^[1]

They won both Europeans and Worlds in 1982, defeating the Soviet Union,^[1] on the basis of huge throws and consistency. They defended their European titles in 1983 but despite two clean programs were beaten by Russian newcomers Elena Valova and Oleg Vassiliev, who they had just defeated at the Europeans and led after the short program here. This was a controversial result to many people as Elena put her hands down on a throw.

In 1980 he suffered a meniscus injury to his knee, for which surgery was necessary. For this reason Baeß and Thierbach had to miss the Nationals and the Europeans in 1981. They came in fourth place the Sarajevo Olympics.^[1]

From 1977 to 1989, he was a Stasi informer under the codename "Gehrhard".^[2]

Thierbach runs the company Automaten Großaufstellung Tassilo Thierbach GmbH in Chemnitz. He has also worked as figure skating coach in collaboration with Ingo Steuer in Chemnitz.

• 1973 East German Championships: Bronze medalist with Antje Heck

• Sportecho, various issues 1984
• ISU statistics
• personal interview
• Tassilo Thierbach at Olympics at Sports-Reference.com (archived)