Achim Hill

Achim Hill ( born April 1, 1935 in Berlin -Köpenick ) is a former rower from the GDR. He won two Olympic silver medals in one.

Hill began in 1953 as a sweep rowers. In 1957, he won his first East German champion in coxless pairs. In 1958 he joined the Skull and won in 1959 and 1960, the East German Championship One. Hill studied at this time in West Berlin in aircraft technology and had, after his coach went to the West, leave his club SC Einheit Berlin. Hill then went for the club engine Baumschulenweg (now Judge Horner RV Berlin ) on.

Nevertheless, he was allowed to begin to Olympic qualification and sat there through against the West German Klaus von Fersen. At the Olympic Games in Rome in 1960, he lost in the flow against its New Zealand namesake James Hill. But Achim Hill was able to qualify through the repechage for the final. Here he secured silver behind the defending champion Vyacheslav Ivanov. Ivanov had seven seconds ahead of Achim Hill, with a second behind Hill won the pole Teodor Kocerka bronze in front of James Hill. Achim Hill was the first East German rower who won an Olympic medal.

After Hill had also won in 1959 in addition to the DDR title in one of the double sculls, he also won in 1961 in the double sculls. After Hill won from 1962 to 1967 every year the title in one. After the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961 Hill moved to the Technical University of Dresden, where he studied applied mechanics.

In the All-German Olympic Trials 1964, Hill was able to qualify again. At the Olympic Games in Tokyo in 1964 Hill won his heat. In the final Ivanov was once again not be beat. Hill won with three and a half seconds behind silver again, this time in front of the Swiss Gottfried Kottmann.

1966 occupied Achim Hill at the World Championships in fourth place. In 1967 he was European champion and was able to defeat Ivanov. At the 1968 Olympic Games Olympic Hill was fifth again.

After his career Hill was working as an engineer at the Institute for rail vehicles. In 1973, he married nine times GDR champion Gisela One hunter.

Awards (selection)

27031
de