East German ice hockey legend Hirsch
“The Man in the Black Mask” died
05/04/2022, 11:10 am
Klaus Hirsch scored 118 goals for the East German national ice hockey team. He is also famous as one of the first mask wearers in the sport. He has now passed away at the age of 82. The association with which he was associated all his life is sad.
East German ice hockey legend Klaus Hirsch passed away, Hirsch slept peacefully on Tuesday morning at the age of 82, the Lausitzer Foxes explained on their website, citing the family of the deceased. Hirsch played for the club for a long time.
The former ice hockey goalkeeper made 118 appearances for the East German national team – including eight world championships and the 1968 Winter Olympics. His greatest international success was bronze at the 1966 European Championships.
According to the club, he has been in the crosshairs of Dinamo Weisswasser, today Lausitzer Fuchs, for 14 years and won eleven championship titles. Hershey was later active as a coach, and in this position he was able to secure three more championship titles with SG Dynamo Weißwasser. He was also inducted into the Germany Ice Hockey Museum Hall of Fame.
A sports reporter coined his nickname
Hershey was one of the first goalkeepers to play internationally with a black painted mask. At the 1963 World Cup, a sports reporter coined his nickname: “The Man in the Black Mask.”
Tonsil foxes surrender obituary An insight into some of the stages of Hershey’s life. In 1948 it was discovered while watching a pilot team in Jahnteich. For decades, he has largely shaped ice hockey at Weißwasser. As a player, coach, or spectator, he attended Foxes matches. “He was an institution in town, an open-hearted person for many, as well as an expert and historian of Weisswasser’s ice sports,” says the obituary.