Hartwig Steenken (23 July 1941 – 10 January 1978) 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 ...

show jumper Show jumping is a part of a group of English riding equestrian events that also includes dressage, eventing, hunters, and equitation. Jumping classes are commonly seen at horse shows throughout the world, including the Olympics. Sometimes shows ...

. He was born in Twistringen, and raised on his father's farm in Bowrede near Hoya in

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...

. Steenken won the individual title at the 1971 European Championships and the 1974

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

, and was on the West German team that won the gold medal at the 1972 Olympics, where he came fourth in the individual event. He won silver at the 1975 European Championships, and decided not to compete in the 1976 Olympics as he had no horse good enough to win; his earlier mount, Simona, being too old. On 1 July 1977, Steenken broke the FEI's rules on amateurism by signing a sponsorship deal with

Campari Campari () is an Italian alcoholic liqueur, considered an apéritif (20.5%, 21%, 24%, 25%, or 28.5% ABV, depending on the country where it is sold), obtained from the infusion of herbs and fruit (including chinotto and cascarilla) in alcohol a ...

. Twelve days later, he sustained serious head injuries as a passenger in a car which crashed into a wall returning from an amateur football match in which he had played. He fell into a coma and died six months later in

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

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* 1941 births 1978 deaths People from Diepholz (district) Sportspeople from Lower Saxony Olympic equestrians of West Germany German male equestrians Olympic gold medalists for West Germany Equestrians at the 1968 Summer Olympics Equestrians at the 1972 Summer Olympics Road incident deaths in Germany German show jumping riders Olympic medalists in equestrian Medalists at the 1972 Summer Olympics {{Germany-equestrian-bio-stub