DramaHistory

Berlin 36 is a 2009 German film telling the fate of Jewish athlete Gretel Bergmann in the 1936 Summer Olympics. She was replaced by the Nazi regime by an athlete later discovered to be a man. The film is based on a true story and was released in Germany on September 10, 2009. Reporters at Der Spiegel challenged the historical basis for many of the events in the film, pointing to arrest records and medical examinations indicating German authorities did not learn Dora Ratjen was male until 1938.

"Nazi Germany 1936. Gretel Bergman is one of Hitler's best gold medal contenders. And she's Jewish."

Credits

Karoline HerfurthGretel Bergmann

Sebastian UrzendowskyMarie Ketteler

Axel PrahlHans Waldmann

Robert GallinowskiSigfrid Kulmbach

Thomas ThiemeHans von Tschammer und Osten