*20.11.1925

Since 2012, Johanna Quaas can officially call herself the „oldest active gymnast in the world“ with her own entry in the Guinness Book of World Records. Gymnastics has been her passion since early childhood and plays a major role in her family life.

Her parents were already active in sports and little Johanna practically grew up on the sports field. Sports also played an important role in her academic career as she worked as an university professor in Halle from 1950. In the GDR performance centre there, she trained many successful gymnasts including for the 1964 Olympic Games.

Mrs. Quaas did not resume her own active sports career until 1981 at the age of 56 and promptly became GDR senior champion at the gymnastics and sports festival in Leipzig the following year.

After that, she regularly took part in gymnastics and sports festivals and the media soon took notice of the sporty senior citizen. This was followed by her appearances on Gottschalk Live, thousands of reports in international magazines and TV programmes as well as millions of views on her YouTube channel.

In September 2014, she was the absolute star at the traditional Steuben Parade in New York on the float of the „New York Turners.“

photos: René Schwerdtel for Wissner-Bosserhoff