Nils Schumann
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Nils Schumann (born May 20, 1978) is a German athlete, winner of the 800 m at the 2000 Summer Olympics.
Schumann, born in Bad Frankenhausen, ran his first senior tournament in 1998. At the European Championships in Budapest, he immediately won the title, although he had already won European junior titles both indoor and outdoor.
He also made the final of the 1999 World Championships, but placed 8th and last. He had a quiet 2000 season, until the Olympics started in Sydney. Schumann cruised through the preliminaries, easily qualifying for the final. In the final, Schumann set in his final sprint at the last straight, taking the lead with just 50 m to go. Favourite Wilson Kipketer of Denmark gained in the closing meters, but was unable to prevent a surprise victory by the German runner.
Schumann, who also won a bronze medal at the 2002 European Championships was unable to defend his Olympic title at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, suffering from injury throughout the 2004 season.
| Olympic medalists in athletics (men) | Olympic Champions in Men's 800 m |
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Teddy Flack | Alfred Tysoe | Jim Lightbody | Paul Pilgrim | Mel Sheppard | Ted Meredith | Albert Hill | Douglas Lowe (twice) | Thomas Hampson | John Woodruff | Mal Whitfield (twice) | Tom Courtney | Peter Snell (twice) | Ralph Doubell | Dave Wottle | Alberto Juantorena | Steve Ovett | Joaquim Cruz | Paul Ereng | William Tanui | Vebjørn Rodal | Nils Schumann | Yuriy Borzakovskiy |