Manfred Klein (rower)

Manfred Klein (born August 22, 1947 in Berlin ) was a helmsman in the German national rowing team from 1972 to 1992 . He took part in nine world championships and four times in the Olympic Games and was Olympic champion in 1988.

Life

Manfred Klein started at the Tegel Rowing Club in 1961 . In 1972 he sat at the Olympic Games in Munich in the last Germany eight trained by Karl Adam , with which he finished fifth in the Olympic final. From 1973 to 1992 Manfred Klein won the German championship title eighteen times in two with helmsman, four with helmsman and eight. He was interned twice. German champions. In 1979 Klein won his first world championship medal when he finished third with the foursome. In his second Olympic participation in 1984 in Los Angeles , he finished sixth with the foursome.

In 1987, Klein switched from four to eight when the new coach Ralf Holtmeyer tried to revive the tradition of Adam's Germany eight . While the eighth ranked sixth at the World Championships in 1987, the eighth ranked significantly compared to 1987 won gold at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul with Wolfgang Maennig , Thomas Möllenkamp , Matthias Mellinghaus , Eckhardt Schultz , Ansgar Wessling , Armin Eichholz , Thomas Domian , Schlagmann Bahne Rabe and Manfred Klein. In the following three years the Germany eighth was world champion three times in a row, with Manfred Klein being the only Olympic champion from 1988 to take part in all three world championship titles. At the Olympic Games in 1992 the eighth was the favorite after four consecutive titles, but then only won bronze behind Canada and Romania.

At the end of his career, Manfred Klein was honored by being the flag bearer of the German team at the Olympic opening ceremony and after 28 years leading an all-German team into the stadium.

Peter Thiede , who won world championship medals with the GDR eighth in 1989 and 1990 , also belonged to the German Olympic team in 1992 . In 1993 Peter Thiede succeeded Manfred Klein as the helmsman of the Germany eight.

The 1.70 meter tall Manfred Klein was employed in the Berlin public service throughout his career, first as an administrative clerk at the Senate of Berlin, later as a judicial officer.