Centurion
Olympic medals winner feels 'perfect' ahead of 100th birthday
Posted: Sunday November 08, 1998 02:59 PM
MARIBOR, Slovenia (AP) -- It's been three-quarters of a century
since he won his first gold medal. But Leon Stukelj, winner of six
Olympic medals in gymastics, still uses the rings hanging in the
doorway of his home.
Not bad for someone about to turn 100.
"Well, not every day," admits Stukelj, the oldest living
Olympic champion.
"I guess it is rather rare to find a man almost 100 years old,
happily married for 65 years and also a winner of three Olympic
gold medals," he said without a trace of arrogance, only a nod of
pride and pleasure.
Stukelj turns 100 on Thursday, but he's not showing his age.
His hair is thin, his hands are covered with spots and he weighs
only about 45 kilograms (99 pounds). Still, he jumps from the chair
to answer the phone and takes long walks each day in a nearby park.
Stukelj's blue eyes glitter as he passionately discusses sports,
politics in neighboring Croatia, the pros and cons of autocracy
versus democracy, and what Slovenia should do to preserve its
identity once it joins the European Union.
"I feel just perfect," Stukelj says, clad impeccably in a gray
suit, looking cheerfully at his great-grandchildren, 2-year-old
twins Helena and Andrej.
He exercises regularly but admits he has to be careful: "My
muscles are 100 yeas old and too much pressure could strain
them."
Born in Novo Mesto in 1898, Stukelj discovered his talent for
gymnastics as a teenager, joining the Sokol (Hawk) amateur sports
association.
In 1924, just a few weeks after graduating from the Law
University in the Slovenian capital Ljubljana, the then 25-year-old
Stukelj was atop the podium at the Paris Olymic Games, winning
Yugoslavia's only two medals - golds in the horizontal bar and
all-round competition.
At the Amsterdam Games in 1928, he won gold in the rings and
bronze medals in the all-around and team exercises. He took silver
in the rings in Berlin in 1936.
As a cherished memory of the Berlin Olympics, staged by Hitler's
Nazi Germany, Stukelj points at a photograph displayed in the
living room cabinet, showing him talking to American sprinter Jesse
Owens.
Just beside hat photo is a picture of a young woman, inscribed:
"Fuer Leon, Leni Riefenstahl."
Stukelj met the notorious Hitler propaganda film director in the
Olympic village in Berlin, too.
"I wanted to have photos of both of them," he said. "I felt
they were making history, one way or another."
There's a picture of fellow gymnasts like Alfred Schwarzmann and
Peter Frankel, as well as Juan Antonio Samaranch, president of the
International Olympic Committee. Also displayed are photos of
Stukelj as a strong young gymnast working on parallel bars or on a
strength move on the rings - a move that became known as the
Stukelj cross.
Stukelj quit gymnastics at age 38, devoting his energy to his
professional work as a judge in Maribor. He retired in 1963, but
continued to aid an attorney and wrote a few books on gymnastics.
Stukelj's recipe or long life could be a model for modern
generations: a healthy life.
"Above all, it's sports."
'The basis is probably in the genes," he said, adding that
both of his sisters lived beyond 90. "There's also the fact that I
was always intellectually active."
But the sports activity that he began as a young boy and has
continued in different forms "was essential for me to stay in
shape. And, if I wanted to be in shape, I have had to live
healthy."
That meant no cigarettes and no alcohol, "but I never liked
that either."
Discipline must have played a role too. He wakes up exactly at 8
a.m. each day, has breakfast and goes for a walk.
"It's 12:30 - lunch time," he exclaims during the interview.
And there's also Stukelj's joy of living.
"I had many struggles in my life, but also a lot of
happiness," he said. "I look forward to each new day."
Stukelj danced his way up a long flight of stairs at the 1996
Atlanta Games opening ceremony.
How about a repeat at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney?
"I don't know - 2000 is still far away," he said. "And the
flight to Australia takes 24 hours - a long trip for an old man.
We'll see."
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