Rudolf Langer (athlete)

Rudolf Langer at the GDR championship in 1963

Rudolf Langer (born March 29, 1939 in Sprottau , Lower Silesia) is a former athlete from the German Democratic Republic who took part in the 1964 Olympic Games.

From 1961 to 1967 Langer was one of the best athletes in the GDR in the shot put . In 1961, 1963, 1964 and 1966 he won the championship title, in 1962 behind Peter Gratz and in 1967 behind Dieter Prollius he finished second and in 1965 he finished third. In the hall he won in 1964, in 1967 he was runner-up behind Hans-Peter Gies , in 1966 and 1969 he was third in the indoor championships. At the European Championships in 1962 he finished 14th with 16.95 m, at the Olympic Games in 1964 he reached eleventh place with 17.29 m.

Langer surpassed Fritz Kühl's GDR record in 1961 with 17.34 m , but was replaced by Dieter Denke in May 1962 . In July 1962 he surpassed Denke with 17.96 m, on September 21, 1962 with 18.03 m he was the first GDR shot putter over 18 meters. Just four days later, Langer improved to 18.48 m, replacing Dietrich Urbach as the holder of the all-German record. In 1963 Langer improved the all-German record three times up to 18.62 m. In 1964 he lost the all-German record to Urbach, and in 1966 Dieter Hoffmann replaced him as the GDR record holder.

Rudolf Langer started for SC construction in Magdeburg . The trained locksmith was 1.91 m tall and had a competition weight of 105 kg. He married the shot putter Johanna Lüttge .

literature

• Klaus Amrhein: Biographical manual on the history of German athletics 1898–2005 . 2 volumes. Darmstadt 2005 published on German Athletics Promotion and Project Society
• Fritz Steinmetz and Manfred Grieser : German records. Development from 1898 to 1991. Kassel 1992