He represented the sports team LG Frankfurt and became West German champion in 1979.[4]
His personal best jump was 2.35 metres, achieved in August 1988 in Forbach. This result ranks him fifth among German high jumpers, behind Carlo Thränhardt, Gerd Wessig, Dietmar Mögenburg and Martin Buß. He had a better indoor jump with 2.36 metres, achieved in March 1989 in Sulingen.[5] The Internationales Hochsprung-Meeting Eberstadt in June 1979, when Nagel, Thränhardt and Mögenburg improved the West German record from 2.26 m to 2.30 m, marked the first time three jumpers had cleared this height in the same competition.
