Klaus Hirche
“Man in the Black Mask” dies at the age of 82
Klaus Hirche was known as the “man in the black mask”.
© imago images/photoarena/Eisenhuth
Former ice hockey goalie Klaus Hirche, also known as the “man with the black mask”, has died at the age of 82.
The GDR ice hockey legend Klaus Hirche (1939 – 2022) is dead. Hirche fell asleep peacefully on Tuesday morning at the age of 82, explains the DEL2 club Lausitzer Füchse on his homepage, citing the family of the deceased.
The former ice hockey goalkeeper took part in 118 international matches for the East German national team – including eight world championships and the 1968 Winter Olympics. His greatest international success was bronze at the European Championships in 1966.
This is how Klaus Hirche got his nickname
According to the club, he was in goal for Dynamo Weißwasser for 14 years and won eleven championship titles. Hirche was later active as a trainer and in this role was able to secure three more championship titles with SG Dynamo Weißwasser. He was also inducted into the Ice Hockey Museum Hall of Fame Germany.
Hirche was one of the first goalkeepers to play internationally with a mask painted black. At the 1963 World Cup, a sports reporter coined his nickname: “The man with the black mask”.