Raimund Bethge

Raimund Bethge (* July 7, 1947 in Schwedt / Oder, County Angermuende ) is a former German track and field athlete, bobsledder and coach. He was national coach in the skeleton and bobsledding.

Raimund Bethge is a trained qualified sports teacher and has long been active as an athlete. In 1969 he was East German champion in the 110 -meter hurdles and fifth in the discipline at the European Athletics Championships in 1969 in Athens. He was born in 1975 until very late by the example of Meinhard takers for bobsledding. After his performances stagnated in athletics and after several injuries, he already moved as before 1973 takers to Oberhof and the bobsled of takers. At the Olympic Games 1976 in Innsbruck, he was still substitute the Goldbobs order taker. With him and Hans- Jürgen Gerhardt and Bernhard Germeshausen as another brakeman in 1977, he won gold in the four-man event at the World Championships in St. Moritz. The following year, the quartet won at the World Championships in Lake Placid bronze. In individual Bethge even won silver with his pilot taker.

After a serious bus accident Bethge had to end his career. His place in contractor Bob initially took a Detlef Richter, shortly after Bogdan Musiol. After his career end Bethge was first assistant coach, club coach finally in Oberhof and coached for example, Wolfgang Hoppe. As with the reunification in 1990, the sports federations have been merged, Bethge was surprisingly the offer of new national coach of the Association to be. Despite some difficulties, Bethge was able to solve the problems in the convergence of the two formerly separate individually successful organizations.

1988 Bethge was awarded bronze in the Patriotic Order of Merit. While visiting the Olympic track in Cesana, it came on 30 November 2005 to a serious accident in which Bethge was seriously injured. The exact background and the question of guilt is not clearly understood. It was not until early 2007, the wounds were healed to the extent that Bethge could come to the bobsled runs again. In his aegis as national coach his athletes, the bobsledder and drivers inside won at Olympic Games, World and European Championships 52 gold medals, 36 silver medals and 38 bronze medals, the Skeleton pilots 7 gold medals, 6 silver and 9 bronze medals. In addition, the World Champion title comes in the 2007 inaugural team competition at the Bobsleigh and Skeleton World Championships, which was won in 2008 and again in 2009. In 2006 he was honored as Coach of the Year by the German Olympic Sports Federation and is the first organization to win. The 10,000 euro prize money he donated the youth work of the Association. On 7 June 2010, the Association announced that Christoph Langen on 1 July 2010 Bethge will replace as national coach, as Bethge is retiring. In 2010 he was elected an honorary member of the FIL. He is the half brother of the shooters Bernhard Hochwald.