East Germany to Allow Athletes to Move Abroad

East German athletes who reach a certain age will be allowed to transfer abroad starting in January, 1990, while those staying at home will have professional contracts with their clubs, an East German newspaper said today.

The Junge Welt newspaper quoted Klaus Eichler, president of the East German Sports Federation, as saying the minimum age for going abroad could be 28, although the precise limit remains to be set.

He also told the paper that East German athletes will be signing contracts shortly with their clubs “specifying obligations and rights of both sides.”

Such contracts first would be signed with national team members and would include “the possibility for certain athletes to go abroad on the basis of the contract.”

Eichler told Junge Welt there would be no “selling out” of the East German sports and indicated the transfers would be linked to several conditions.

Eichler said only “those athletes who for a long time have successfully represented our country, who have reached a certain age and who are ready, through their employment abroad, to repay some of the money that had been invested in their development” will be considered for transfer.

He said money from transfers will go to the East German sports federation.

The sports chief said individual sport federations would be responsible for giving permission for transfers abroad.

Eichler was speaking after meeting with some of the country’s leading stars, including shotput world-record holder Ulf Timmermann and middle-distance runner Sigrun Wodars, Junge Welt said.