Hildegard Falck

{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2016}}

{{Infobox sportsperson

|name=

|image= Hildegard Falck c1974.jpg

| image_size =

|caption=

|birth_date= {{birth-date and age|8 June 1949}}

|birth_place= Nettelrede, West Germany

|death_date=

|death_place=

| height = {{convert|1.73|m|ftin|abbr=on}}

| weight = {{convert|58|kg|lb|abbr=on}}

|sport=Athletics

|event=400 m, 800 m, 1500 m

|pb=400 m – 53.1 (1974)
800 m – 1:58.45 (1971)
1500 m – 4:14.6 (1971)[http://trackfield.brinkster.net/Profile.asp?ID=1181&Gender=W Hildegard Falck]. trackfield.brinkster.net

|club=Hannover 96

|alma_mater=

| show-medals = yes

| medaltemplates =

{{MedalCountry | {{FRG}} }}

{{MedalCompetition|Olympic Games}}

{{MedalGold| 1972 Munich | 800 m}}

{{MedalBronze| 1972 Munich | 4 × 400 m relay}}

{{MedalEuropeanChampionships}}

{{MedalSilver|1971 Helsinki|4 × 400 m relay }}

{{MedalCompetition|European Indoor Championships}}

{{MedalGold|1971 Sofia|800 m }}

}}

Hildegard Falck (née Janze on 8 June 1949) is a retired West German runner. At the 1972 Olympics she won a gold medal in the 800 m and a bronze medal in the 4 × 400 m relay with West German team. In the 800 m final she finished 0.1 seconds ahead of Nijolė Sabaitė and Gunhild Hoffmeister.

On 11 July 1971 Falck ran the 800 m in 1:58.5 minutes in Stuttgart, improving the world record of Vera Nikolic by two seconds. She was the first woman to clock a time under two minutes if the unratified marks of Sin Kim Dan are discounted. Her record stood until 1973.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vxxOw3FvOgwC&pg=PA267|title=Running Through the Ages |author=Sears, Edward Seldon |isbn=978-0-786409-71-6 |page=267 |publisher=McFarland |year=2001}}

Before turning to athletics, Falck studied to become a secondary school teacher and trained in handball and swimming. In 1971, besides her 800 m world record, she won a gold medal in the 800 m at the European Indoor Championships and a silver in the 4 × 400 m relay at European Championships; she also helped Ellen Tittel, Sylvia Schenk and Christa Merten to break the 4 × 800 m world record.

Domestically she won the 800 m titles in 1970 and 1971 (both indoor and outdoor), and in 1973 outdoor. In 1972, she was awarded the Silver Bay Leaf of the German Track & Field Association.

Falck was coached by her husband Rolf Falck. They later divorced, and she married Dr. Klaus Kimmich, a pentathlete with whom she had two children.[https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/fa/hildegard-falck-1.html Hildegard Falck] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025053916/http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/fa/hildegard-falck-1.html |date=25 October 2012 }}. sports-reference.com