Wilhelm "Willi" Wülbeck (born 18 December 1954) is a retired German middle-distance runner. Competing in the 800 m he finished fourth at the

1976 Summer Olympics The 1976 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Montreal 1976 (), were an international multi-sport event held from July 17 to August 1, 1976, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Montreal ...

. He missed the

1980 Moscow Olympics The 1980 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad () and officially branded as Moscow 1980 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 19 July to 3 August 1980 in Moscow, Soviet Union, in present-day Russ ...

due to the West German boycott and could not participate in the

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and commonly known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the ...

because of an injury. He also finished eighth at the

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; ...

and 1982 European Championships. His greatest success came as he won the gold medal at the 1983 World Championships in

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

. Wülbeck ran a time of 1:43.65 which remains the German record. In the

1500 metres The 1500 metres or 1500-metre run is the foremost middle distance track event in athletics. The distance has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896 and the World Championships in Athletics since 1983. It is equivalent to 1.5 kilomet ...

his personal best time was 3:33.74 minutes, achieved in August 1980 in

Koblenz Koblenz ( , , ; Moselle Franconian language, Moselle Franconian: ''Kowelenz'') is a German city on the banks of the Rhine (Middle Rhine) and the Moselle, a multinational tributary. Koblenz was established as a Roman Empire, Roman military p ...

. This result places him seventh on the German all-time performers list. Wülbeck won ten consecutive West German championships over 800 m (1974–1983), an unprecedented achievement.West German championships, men's 800 metres
sport-komplett.de He received multiple national awards, including the Silver Bay Leaf in 1980, the

Rudolf Harbig Memorial Award The Rudolf Harbig Memorial Award () is an annual sports award in recognition of German competitors in the sport of athletics who, in performance and attitude, have been role models for young people. The award was created in 1950, named after German ...

in 1984, and the Sports Badge of North Rhine Westphalia in 1983. In 2002 he was an ambassador for the unsuccessful German 2012 Olympic bid. Wülbeck studied biology and sports and after retiring from competitions become a sports teacher. He later worked as a public relation consultant for a sporting goods enterprise and as a freelance sports journalist. He also founded a sports school and a public relations agency in

Duisburg Duisburg (; , ) is a city in the Ruhr metropolitan area of the western States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Lying on the confluence of the Rhine (Lower Rhine) and the Ruhr (river), Ruhr rivers in the center of the Rhine-Ruh ...

. From 1992 to 2006 he headed the athletics department at ASV Duisburg.

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* * * 1954 births Living people Sportspeople from Oberhausen Athletes from Düsseldorf (region) West German male middle-distance runners Athletes (track and field) at the 1976 Summer Olympics Olympic athletes for West Germany World Athletics Championships medalists World Athletics Championships winners West German Athletics Championships winners {{West Germany-athletics-bio-stub