Fabian Hambüchen facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Fabian Hambüchen
Hambüchen in 2019
Personal information
Country represented	Germany
Born	(1987-10-25) 25 October 1987 (age 37) Bergisch Gladbach, West Germany
Residence	Wetzlar, Germany
Height	1.64 m (5 ft 5 in)
Weight	63 kg (139 lb)
Discipline	Artistic gymnastics
Level	Senior international
Club	TSG Niedergirmes, Wetzlar; KTV Straubenhardt, Straubenhardt
Head coach(es)	Wolfgang Hambüchen
Medal record Men's artistic gymnastics Representing  Germany Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 1 1 1 World Championships 1 2 6 European Championships 6 2 3 European Games 1 1 0 Summer Universiade 1 2 0 Total 10 8 10 Olympic Games Gold 2016 Rio de Janeiro Horizontal bar Silver 2012 London Horizontal bar Bronze 2008 Beijing Horizontal bar World Championships Gold 2007 Stuttgart Horizontal bar Silver 2007 Stuttgart All-around Silver 2013 Antwerp Horizontal bar Bronze 2006 Aarhus All-around Bronze 2006 Aarhus Vault Bronze 2007 Stuttgart Team Bronze 2010 Rotterdam Team Bronze 2010 Rotterdam Horizontal bar Bronze 2013 Antwerp All-around European Games Gold 2015 Baku Horizontal bar Silver 2015 Baku Floor exercise European Championships Gold 2005 Debrecen Horizontal bar Gold 2007 Amsterdam Horizontal bar Gold 2008 Lausanne Horizontal bar Gold 2009 Milan All-around Gold 2009 Milan Floor exercise Gold 2010 Birmingham Team Silver 2007 Amsterdam All-around Silver 2008 Lausanne Team Bronze 2008 Lausanne Floor exercise Bronze 2009 Milan Parallel bars Bronze 2010 Birmingham Horizontal bar Summer Universiade Gold 2015 Gwangji Horizontal bar Silver 2013 Kazan All-around Silver 2013 Kazan Floor exercise

Fabian Hambüchen (born October 25, 1987) is a famous retired German gymnast. He is an Olympic champion on the horizontal bar from the 2016 Rio Olympics. He also won a World Championship in Stuttgart 2007 on the same event. Fabian has won six European championships on different gymnastics equipment. The horizontal bar was his best event.

Fabian also won gold medals at the European Games and the 2015 Summer Universiade. He has a complete set of Olympic medals: gold from 2016, silver from 2012 London, and bronze from 2008 Beijing. After he stopped competing, Fabian appeared on TV and in advertisements.

Early Life and School

Fabian Hambüchen was born on October 25, 1987. He was the second child of Beate Hambüchen and Wolfgang Hambüchen. His father was a gymnastics coach. They lived in Bergisch Gladbach, which was in West Germany at the time.

Soon after Fabian was born, his family moved to Wetzlar. He went to school there and finished in 2007. His father coached him in gymnastics while he was still in school. In 2012, Fabian started studying sports management at the German Sport University Cologne. He later changed his studies to sport and performance, finishing in 2020.

Gymnastics Career

Starting Out

Fabian Hambüchen's first big competition as a senior gymnast was in 2003. It was the 2003 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Anaheim. He competed in four events. However, his German team did not make it to the team final.

In 2004, Fabian was the youngest German athlete at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. The German team finished 8th in the team event. Fabian placed 23rd in the all-around. He also finished 7th in the horizontal bar final.

In 2005, Fabian won his first big title. He became the European champion on the horizontal bar. This happened at the 2005 European Artistic Gymnastics Championships. Later that year, at the 2005 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships, he placed 4th on the horizontal bar.

2006: First World Medals

Fabian competed at the 2006 European Men's Artistic Gymnastics Championships. The German team finished 7th. He placed 5th on vault and 7th on parallel bars.

At the 2006 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships, Fabian won his first World Championship medals. He was only 18 years old. He earned a bronze medal in the all-around competition. He also won a bronze medal on the vault. The German team finished 7th.

2007: World Champion

Hambüchen at the 2007 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships

In 2007, Fabian competed at the 2007 European Artistic Gymnastics Championships. He won a silver medal in the all-around. He also won the horizontal bar title for the second time.

The 2007 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships were held in Stuttgart, Germany. The German team won a bronze medal in front of their home fans. Fabian won a silver medal in the all-around, just behind Yang Wei. Then, he won the gold medal on the horizontal bar. This made him the World Champion on that event. He also placed 5th on the vault. Because of his great year, he was named the German Sportspersonality of the Year.

2008: Olympic Bronze

At the 2008 European Men's Artistic Gymnastics Championships, the German team won a silver medal. Fabian won a bronze medal on floor exercise. He also defended his European title on the horizontal bar. This was his third European title on that event.

Fabian was a favorite for the horizontal bar title at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. He was also expected to win an all-around medal. The German team finished 4th. In the all-around final, Fabian fell from the horizontal bar and finished 7th. He placed 4th on floor and parallel bars. He then won his first Olympic medal, a bronze, on the horizontal bar.

2009-2011: Injuries and Comebacks

At the 2009 European Artistic Gymnastics Championships, Fabian won two gold medals. He won the all-around title and the floor exercise title. He also won a bronze medal on parallel bars. He had to miss the 2009 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships because of a foot injury.

In 2010, at the 2010 European Men's Artistic Gymnastics Championships, the German team won the European title. Fabian won a bronze medal on the horizontal bar. At the 2010 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships, he helped the German team win a bronze medal. He also won another bronze medal on the horizontal bar.

In January 2011, Fabian tore his Achilles tendon. This injury kept him out of the 2011 European Artistic Gymnastics Championships. He recovered in time for the 2011 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships. Germany finished 5th in the team event. Fabian placed 4th in the horizontal bar final.

2012: Olympic Silver

Fabian missed the European Championships in 2012 to focus on the Olympics. At the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, the German team finished 7th. Fabian had some mistakes in the all-around final and finished 15th. However, in the horizontal bar final, he won his second Olympic medal. He took home the silver medal, just behind Epke Zonderland.

2013-2015: More Medals and Challenges

At the 2013 European Artistic Gymnastics Championships, Fabian fell on the horizontal bar and finished 6th. In July, he competed at the 2013 Summer Universiade. He won a silver medal in the all-around. He also won a silver medal on the floor exercise.

At the 2013 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships, Fabian won a bronze medal in the all-around. He also won a silver medal on the horizontal bar, again behind Epke Zonderland.

Hambüchen in 2014

In 2014, at the 2014 European Men's Artistic Gymnastics Championships, the German team finished 4th. Fabian had a bad fall on the horizontal bar and didn't finish his routine. At the 2014 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships, he finished 8th in the all-around. He did not qualify for the horizontal bar final after falling in the qualifying round.

Fabian did not compete in the 2015 European Artistic Gymnastics Championships. In June, he won the gold medal on the horizontal bar at the 2015 European Games. In July, he won another gold medal on the horizontal bar at the 2015 Summer Universiade. At the 2015 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships, he had to withdraw from the all-around final due to illness. He finished 7th on the horizontal bar.

2016: Olympic Gold and Retirement

Fabian was injured for the first half of 2016. He could not compete in the Olympic test event. However, the German team still qualified for the 2016 Rio Olympics. Fabian returned to compete in three events at the German Olympic trials.

At the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, the German team finished seventh. Fabian qualified in 1st place for the horizontal bar final. There, he won his third Olympic medal and his first Olympic gold! He became the Olympic horizontal bar champion.

With this gold medal, Fabian completed a full set of Olympic horizontal bar medals. He won bronze in 2008, silver in 2012, and finally gold in 2016. He retired after the 2016 Rio Olympics. He said his Olympic title was "a dream come true." In 2022, he was added to the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame.

After Gymnastics

In 2010, Fabian published his autobiography called Fabian Hambüchen – Die Autobiografie. After he stopped competing, Fabian appeared on many game shows. He also worked as a gymnastics expert on talk shows. He is now a gymnastics expert for the ARD TV channel.

He helped cover the Pyeongchang 2018 and Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. He also covered the Tokyo 2020 Olympics for Eurosport. He even tried out many Olympic sports himself in a TV show called Hambüchen Challenge. Fabian also works with the Hessian Ministry of Education. He helps promote adult literacy education. He is known as "Hessen's ambassador for literacy."

Personal Life

In July 2022, Fabian married Viktoria Diesterbeck, a fitness trainer. They met in 2020. He lives in Wetzlar, Germany. Because he is not very tall, he has a nickname: "Turnfloh." This means "gymnastics flea" in German.

Works

Books

• 2010: Fabian Hambüchen – Die Autobiografie (ISBN 978-3-89602-948-5)

Television

See also

In Spanish: Fabian Hambüchen para niños