Detlef Lewe (20 June 1939,

Dortmund Dortmund (; Westphalian nds, Düörpm ; la, Tremonia) is the third-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne and Düsseldorf, and the eighth-largest city of Germany, with a population of 588,250 inhabitants as of 2021. It is the la ...

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

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

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

Sporting career

Competing in four

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...

, Lewe earned two medals in the C-1 1000 m event with a silver in 1968 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, me ...

. 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 ( February 25, July 22 and August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 10, and August 6). The world population increased by 2.1% this year, the highest increase in history. Events Ja ...

, 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 Cov ...

).ICF medalists for Olympic and World Championships – Part 2: rest of flatwater (now sprint) and remaining canoeing disciplines: 1936–2007.
/ref> 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 commonly known as Munich 1972 (german: München 1972), was an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. ...

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

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 wholesal ...

, 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

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lewe, Detlef 1939 births 2008 deaths Sportspeople from Dortmund People from the Province of Westphalia German male canoeists Olympic canoeists of the United Team of Germany Olympic canoeists of 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