A month before the 1936 Olympic Games were to be held in Berlin, Margaret Bergmann soared 5ft 3in over the high-jump bar at the Adolf Hitler Stadium in Stuttgart, equalling the German record.
Although she was one of the country’s top athletes, the stellar feat did not result in her selection for the Olympics.
A letter soon arrived from the German Olympic Committee with a curious explanation. “Looking back on your recent performances, you could not possibly have expected to be chosen,” it sniffed. The missive went on to offer her a free standing-room ticket to the event; travel expenses were out of the question. Her jump was also expunged from the record books.
Bergmann was Jewish and the Nazis had no intention of allowing