Neues Deutschland. December 11, 1973.
Neues Deutschland: After your fifth-place finish in the compulsory exercises at the GDR Championships in Dessau, did you still believe you could win the overall title?
Wolfgang Thune: I certainly hoped so. In any case, my motto was: Don't give up. I wanted to climb back to the top.
ND: How do you assess Klaus Koste's performance?
WT: Had he had a longer preparation period, he certainly wouldn't have finished sixth; instead, he would have given me the fierce battle for the title that I had expected. However, he is older and finds it more difficult than I do to maintain his form. The trip to Japan was, after all, very grueling.
ND: What was the highlight of your competitive tour?
WT: My all-around victory in Tokyo and the pommel horse final.
ND: How difficult was it to win there?
WT: You really have to perform with great consistency and originality to win in Japan. With Universiade champions Shchukin and Safronov from the USSR - as well as the strong Japanese competitors (only their top three were missing) - the competition was extremely tough.
ND: How were your successes celebrated?
WT: If you mean alcohol - not at all. The thought of the upcoming GDR Championships was always in the back of our minds.
ND: Did you eat with chopsticks in Japan?
WT: Of course. I had actually tried it once before in the DPRK, and I managed it better than some of the others did.
ND: What dish did you order when you got back home?
WT: A filet steak. But the important thing was that it came with potatoes.
ND: How long did the return journey take?
WT: The flight itself took twelve hours. But we didn't get any proper sleep for twenty-four hours, because our plane couldn't land in Berlin due to black ice and had to divert to Prague.
ND: How did your last week go?
WT: A competition in Tokyo over the weekend; arrival in Berlin on Tuesday following the long flight; and the start of the GDR Championships on Friday.
ND: How much weight does a gymnast lose during a competition?
WT: About two kilos. The better that one is able to prepare for a competition, the less weight is lost afterwards.
ND: Do you keep a running tally of the scores during the competition?
WT: Yes. I stop doing so once I have a one-point lead.
ND: What do you focus on during the warm-up before the competition?
WT: Concentration builds self-confidence. That is why I execute every difficult element as closely as possible to how I will perform it later in the actual competition.