German pole vaulter Lobinger dies at 50 after cancer fight

Lobinger, also a two-time European indoor champion, was the first German to clear the six metres mark outdoors in 1997 and was also twice on the podium at the European athletics championships.

Germany’s Tim Lobinger of Germany competes in the men’s pole vault at the athletics IAAF Super Grand Prix Athletissima. | Photo Credit: Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP

Former world indoor pole vault champion Tim Lobinger has died from cancer at the age of 50, his family announced on Friday.

Lobinger, also a two-time European indoor champion, was the first German to clear the six metres mark outdoors in 1997 and was also twice on the podium at the European athletics championships.

Lobinger, who captured the world indoor title in Birmingham in 2003, fell sick in 2018 and underwent five bouts of chemotherapy but passed away at his family home in Munich on Friday.