Anton Winkler (23 February 1954 – 8 October 2016) was a

West German West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

luge A luge is a small one- or two-person sled on which one sleds supine (face up) and feet-first. A luger steers by using the calf muscles to flex the sled's runners or by exerting opposite shoulder pressure to the seat. Racing sleds weigh for s ...

r who competed during the late 1970s and early 1980s. He won the bronze medal in the men's singles event at the

1980 Winter Olympics The 1980 Winter Olympics, officially the XIII Olympic Winter Games and also known as Lake Placid 1980, were an international multi-sport event held from February 13 to 24, 1980, in Lake Placid, New York, United States. Lake Placid was elected ...

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. Winkler also won three medals at the

FIL World Luge Championships The FIL World Luge Championships, part of the International Luge Federation (FIL) have taken place on an almost annual basis in non-Winter Olympics years since 1955. These championships are shown for artificial tracks. See FIL World Luge Natural T ...

with a silver (singles:

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd go ...

) and two bronzes (singles:

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...

, doubles:

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...

). Additionally, he won a gold medal in the men's singles event at the 1977 FIL European Luge Championships in

Königssee The Königssee is a natural lake in the extreme southeast Berchtesgadener Land district of the German state of Bavaria, near the Austrian border. Most of the lake is within the Berchtesgaden National Park. Description Situated within the Berchte ...

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

. Winkler was the first men's singles

Luge World Cup The Luge World Cup season is a yearly competition first organized by the International Luge Federation The International Luge Federation ( French: Fédération Internationale de Luge de Course (FIL); German: Internationaler Rennrodelverband) is ...

overall champion in 1977-78. Winkler died on 8 October 2016.

References

FIL-Luge.org 13 October 2016 article on Winkler's passing.
- accessed 15 October 2016. * * * * * 1954 births 2016 deaths German male lugers Lugers at the 1976 Winter Olympics Lugers at the 1980 Winter Olympics Olympic bronze medalists for West Germany Olympic lugers of West Germany Olympic medalists in luge Medalists at the 1980 Winter Olympics People from Berchtesgadener Land Sportspeople from Upper Bavaria {{Germany-Winter-Olympic-medalist-stub