Arthur Jonath (9 September 1909 – 14 April 1963) was a German sprinter. He competed at the

1932 Summer Olympics The 1932 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the X Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1932) were an international multi-sport event held from July 30 to August 14, 1932 in Los Angeles, California, United States. The Games were held duri ...

in the 4 × 100 m, 100 m and 200 m events and finished in second, third and fourth place, respectively. Jonath was a boxer, and switched to athletics due to a hand injury. In 1931-1932 he won the German titles in both 100 m and 200 m. He set three indoor world records in the 50 m and 60 m in 1930 and 1931, and two outdoor world records in the 100 m in 1932 and 1933; he set three more world records with the German 4 × 100 m relay team. After the Los Angeles Games, Jonath stayed in the United States upon invitation from actresses

Greta Garbo Greta Garbo (born Greta Lovisa Gustafsson; 18 September 1905 – 15 April 1990) was a Swedish-American actress. Regarded as one of the greatest screen actresses, she was known for her melancholic, somber persona, her film portrayals of tragedy, ...

and

Marlene Dietrich Marie Magdalene "Marlene" DietrichBorn as Maria Magdalena, not Marie Magdalene, according to Dietrich's biography by her daughter, Maria Riva ; however Dietrich's biography by Charlotte Chandler cites "Marie Magdalene" as her birth name . (, ; ...

. He was offered American citizenship and a university education, but his stepfather brought him back to Germany. Jonath was a guest of honor at the Berlin Olympics. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

he fought as an SS officer on the Eastern Front; he was taken prisoner by the Soviet troops and then transferred to an American

prisoner-of-war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of w ...

camp near

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

. After the war Jonath ran a petrol station and trained runners at ''FSV 1899 Frankfurt''. His nephew Ulrich also became a prominent athletic coach.

References

1909 births 1963 deaths People from Fröndenberg Sportspeople from Arnsberg (region) People from the Province of Westphalia Athletes (track and field) at the 1932 Summer Olympics German male sprinters Olympic athletes of Germany Olympic bronze medalists for Germany Olympic silver medalists for Germany Medalists at the 1932 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists in athletics (track and field) Olympic bronze medalists in athletics (track and field) Waffen-SS personnel SS officers German prisoners of war in World War II held by the Soviet Union German prisoners of war in World War II held by the United States {{Germany-athletics-Olympic-medalist-stub