Detlef Lewe (20 June 1939,

Dortmund Dortmund (; ; ) is the third-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia, after Cologne and Düsseldorf, and the List of cities in Germany by population, ninth-largest city in Germany. With a population of 614,495 inhabitants, it is the largest city ...

– 1 October 2008)Derwesten.de 1 October 2008 story on Lewe's death
- accessed 2 October 2008. was a

West German West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republic after its capital c ...

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

sprint canoeist Canoe sprint is a water sport in which athletes race in specially designed sprint canoes or sprint kayaks on calm water over a short distance. Prior to November 2008, canoe sprint was known as flatwater racing. The term is still in use today ...

who competed from the late 1950s to the early 1970s.

Sporting career

Competing in four

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, then part of the King ...

, Lewe earned two medals in the C-1 1000 m event with a silver in

1968 Events January–February * January 1968, January – The I'm Backing Britain, I'm Backing Britain campaign starts spontaneously. * January 5 – Prague Spring: Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Cze ...

and a bronze in

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, ...

. He also won four canoe sprint world championship medals with three golds (C-1 500 m:

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses (Solar eclipse of February 25, 1971, February 25, Solar eclipse of July 22, 1971, July 22 and Solar eclipse of August 20, 1971, August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 1971 lunar eclip ...

, C-1 1000 m:

1966 Events January * January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko. * January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...

, 1971) and one silver (C-1 1000 m:

1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Cove ...

). Lewe also carried the West German flag at the opening ceremonies of the

1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and officially branded as Munich 1972 (; ), were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. It was the ...

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

Later in life

After the Olympics,

-born Lewe moved to

and became a

butcher A butcher is a person who may Animal slaughter, slaughter animals, dress their flesh, sell their meat, or participate within any combination of these three tasks. They may prepare standard cuts of meat and poultry for sale in retail or wholesale ...

, a business he ran until prior to his 2008 death. His shop was located near the Olympic area where the 1972 Summer Olympics were held. Lewe died in Munich after a brief illness.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lewe, Detlef 1939 births 2008 deaths Sportspeople from Dortmund Sportspeople from the Province of Westphalia German male canoeists Olympic canoeists for the United Team of Germany Olympic canoeists for West Germany Olympic silver medalists for West Germany Olympic bronze medalists for West Germany Olympic medalists in canoeing Canoeists at the 1960 Summer Olympics Canoeists at the 1964 Summer Olympics Canoeists at the 1968 Summer Olympics Canoeists at the 1972 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1968 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1972 Summer Olympics ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships medalists in Canadian 20th-century German sportsmen