Ferdinand Steiner (23 May 1884 – 19 August 1968) was a Czech artistic gymnast. He represented Bohemia and from 1914 Czechoslovakia.

Life

Steiner was born on 23 May 1884 in Tovačov. He died on 19 August 1968.

Career

Steiner took part in the World Gymnastics Championships in 1909, 1911 and 1913. In 1909, he won gold in the team combined competition. In 1911, he won gold in both the team event and in the combined event, and also took gold in the rings and bronze in the horizontal bar. At this World Championships, the Bohemians dominated the team event, and took the top four places in the overall competition. At his last World Championships, in 1913, he again took gold in the team competition. Steiner introduced an element, the inverted cross, a move that is still valued as a "C"-difficulty element in the current Code of Points, if not much higher, depending upon the movement from which it is entered. Since medal winners who represented Austria-Hungary came from Bohemia, these medals were later transferred to Czechoslovakia by the FIG. After Steiner's competitive career was over, he was a very reputable trainer of his fellow Czechoslovak Sokol gymnasts.