Christa Welger

{{Infobox sportsperson

| name = Christa Welger

| image = ChristaWelger1962.png

| alt = A smiling young woman with short hair, tousled by wind outdoors

| caption = Christa Welger, from a 1962 publication

| birth_name = Christa E. Zander

| birth_date = {{Birth date text|June 1939}}

| birth_place = Berlin

| death_date = {{Death-date and age|May 30, 2019|June 1939}}

| death_place = New Jersey

| occupation = Athlete

| years_active = 1958-1963

| spouse = {{marriage|Saul Welger|1962|2002|end=died}}

| country = {{USA}}
{{FRG}}

| sport = {{ubl

}}

| show-medals = no

| medaltemplates-title = Medal record{{cite web |url=https://welgerfoundation.org/history/ |title=History |website=welgerfoundation.org |publisher=Christa and Saul Welger Foundation |access-date=7 October 2024}}

| medaltemplates =

{{MedalCountry|{{FRG}}}}

{{Medal|Country|{{FRG}}}}

{{Medal|Country|{{USA}}}}

}}

Christa Zander Welger (June 1939 – May 30, 2019) was a German-born wheelchair athlete. She represented West Germany and later the United States in various international events.

Early life

Christa Zander was raised in Berlin during World War II, and then in West Berlin after the city was partitioned. She was paralyzed by polio at a young age,{{Cite news |date=1962-02-28 |title=Wheelchair Romance Inspires Sports Festival |pages=6 |work=Hawaii Tribune-Herald |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82347539/wheelchair-romance-inspires-sports/ |access-date=2021-07-28 |via=Newspapers.com}}{{Cite news |date=1964-12-22 |title=5 Paralympic Medals Won by Boro Pair |pages=409 |work=Daily News |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82348827/5-paralympic-medals-won-by-boro-pair/ |access-date=2021-07-28 |via=Newspapers.com}} and developed physical strength in sports, including swimming and field events.

Career

As a young woman, Zander belonged to the Handicapped Sports League of Berlin, and worked in a factory.{{Cite journal |date=March 1962 |title=Wheelchair Romance |url=https://archive.org/details/1958and1959vol.1and2rm/1962%20and%201963%20%28Vol.%205%20and%206%29%20RM/page/n61/mode/2up?q=Christa+Welger |journal=Recreation Management |pages=24 |via=Internet Archive}} She represented West Germany at the 1958 and 1959 Stoke Mandeville Games. She won eight medals at the 1960 Summer Paralympic Games in Rome. As Christa Welger, she represented the United States as a swimmer and field athlete at the Stoke Mandeville Games in 1962,{{Cite news |date=July 26, 1962 |title=U.S. Wheelchair Athletes Pace International Games |page=20 |work=The New York Times |via=ProQuest}}{{Cite news |date=July 28, 1962 |title=U.S. Takes Archery Honors At World Paraplegic Meet |page=36 |work=The New York Times |via=ProQuest}} and at 1964 Summer Paralympics in Tokyo,{{Cite news |last=Machado |first=Carl |date=1964-11-04 |title=Paralympians are a Hit |pages=36 |work=Honolulu Star-Bulletin |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/82347791/paralympians-are-a-hitcarl-machado/ |access-date=2021-07-28 |via=Newspapers.com}} where she won a gold medal and three silver medals. She also competed at the National Wheelchair Games in 1963. She was inducted into the Adaptive Sports USA Hall of Fame in 1986.{{Cite web |title=Awards & Recognition: Hall of Fame |url=https://www.adaptivesportsusa.org/awards-recognition/ |url-status=live |access-date=2021-07-28 |website=Adaptive Sports USA |language=en-US |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170911094309/https://adaptivesportsusa.org/awards-recognition/ |archive-date=2017-09-11}}

Personal life and legacy

Zander married American accountant and wheelchair athlete Saul Welger in 1962, and moved to New York to live with him.{{Cite book |last=Davis |first=David |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O3zBDwAAQBAJ&q=Christa+Welger&pg=PT250 |title=Wheels of Courage: How Paralyzed Veterans from World War II Invented Wheelchair Sports, Fought for Disability Rights, and Inspired a Nation |date=2020-08-25 |publisher=Center Street |isbn=978-1-5460-8462-4 |language=en}}{{Cite book |last=Little |first=Jan |url=http://archive.org/details/ifitwerentforhon0000litt_s5z6 |title=If it weren't for the honor--I'd rather have walked : previously untold tales of the journey to the ADA |date=1996 |publisher=Cambridge, Mass. : Brookline Books |others=Internet Archive |isbn=978-1-57129-026-7 |pages=132}} They had two children, born in 1966 and 1970. She was widowed when Saul died in 2002; she died in 2019. After her death, the Christa & Saul Welger Foundation was established, to continue their work in supporting sports opportunities for physically disabled youth.{{Cite web |title=Christa and Saul Welger Foundation |url=https://welgerfoundation.org/ |access-date=2021-07-28 |language=en-US}}