Otto Scheff, born Otto Sochaczewsky (December 12, 1889 – October 26, 1956) was an

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

n freestyle

swimmer Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water (e.g., in a sea or lake). Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic ...

water polo Water polo is a competitive sport, competitive team sport played in water between two teams of seven players each. The game consists of four quarters in which the teams attempt to score goals by throwing the water polo ball, ball into the oppo ...

player, lawyer, politician, and sports official who competed in the

1906 Intercalated Games The 1906 Intercalated Games or 1906 Olympic Games (), held from 22 April 1906 to 2 May 1906, was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated in Athens, Kingdom of Greece. They were at the time considered to be Olympic Games and were re ...

, in the

1908 Summer Olympics The 1908 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the IV Olympiad and also known as London 1908) were an international multi-sport event held in London, England, from 27 April to 31 October 1908. The 1908 Games were originally schedu ...

, and in the

1912 Summer Olympics The 1912 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad () and commonly known as Stockholm 1912, were an international multi-sport event held in Stockholm, Sweden, between 6 July and 22 July 1912. The opening ceremony was he ...

Biography

Scheff was born in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

, he was still at school in 1906 and it was only for the intervention of the Austrian Olympic Committee he was allowed three weeks leave to compete in the

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

. At those Games he competed in three events, first up was the 1 mile freestyle race, it was a straight final with Scheff coming in third for the bronze medal behind winner Henry Taylor and second place John Arthur Jarvis both from

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

, three days later Scheff got revenge on the two British swimmers by winning the gold medal by two seconds in the 400 metre freestyle, he was also part of the 4×250 metre freestyle relay team, but they didn't finish the race. Two years later he was in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

for the

, again he entered three events, in the 400 metre freestyle he won another bronze medal and again losing to Henry Taylor, he also reached the final of the 1500 metre freestyle but didn't finish the race, he also managed to reach the semi-finals of the 100 metre freestyle. At the

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

he participated in the water polo tournament as part of the Austrian team finishing in fourth place. From 1945 to 1953 he was elected to the

National Council of Austria The National Council (, ) is one of the two houses of the Austrian Parliament and is frequently referred to as the lower house. The constitution endows the National Council with far more power than the Federal Council. Responsibilities The Nat ...

as a member of the

Austrian People's Party The Austrian People's Party ( , ÖVP ) is a Christian-democratic and liberal-conservative political party in Austria. Since January 2025, the party has been led by Christian Stocker (as an acting leader). It is currently the second-largest p ...

. He was vice president of the

Austrian Olympic Committee The Austrian Olympic Committee (, ÖOC) is the non-profit organization representing Austrian sportsperson, athletes in the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The ÖOC also represents the selection of Austrian cities in their bid to be the si ...

. He died at

Maria Enzersdorf Maria Enzersdorf (Central Bavarian: ''Maria Enzasduaf'') is a small city in the district of Mödling (district), Mödling in the Austrian state of Lower Austria. There are several castles and ruins in the forests surrounding Maria Enzersdorf, in ...

in 1956. His daughter Gertraud Scheff was already qualified for the

1940 Summer Olympics The 1940 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XII Olympiad, was a planned international multi-sport event scheduled to have been held from 21 September to 6 October 1940, in Tokyo City, Japan, and later rescheduled for 20 July t ...

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

, when the games were cancelled.

Mödling Mödling () is the capital of the Austrian Mödling (district), district of the same name located approximately 15 km south of Vienna. Mödling lies in Lower Austria's industrial zone (Industrieviertel). The Mödlingbach, a brook which rises ...

named a street "Dr. Otto Scheff-Weg".

References

External links

profile with picture
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Scheff, Otto 1889 births 1956 deaths Swimmers from Berlin Water polo players from Berlin Austrian Jews Austrian male freestyle swimmers Austrian male water polo players Jewish swimmers Olympic swimmers for Austria Olympic water polo players for Austria Swimmers at the 1906 Intercalated Games Swimmers at the 1908 Summer Olympics Water polo players at the 1912 Summer Olympics Olympic bronze medalists for Austria World record setters in swimming Olympic bronze medalists in swimming Medalists at the 1908 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1906 Intercalated Games

Biography

See also

References

External links