Dieter KOTTYSCH

Hamburg-based boxer Dieter Kottysch became the only Olympic winner from his city in boxing when he beat Wiesław Rudkowski of Poland in the final of the light-middleweight category at the 1972 München Olympics by a 3-2 decision. In his three earlier bouts he was clearly the better man in the ring. His Olympic triumph was also the first West German boxing victory after World War II. Therefore he was awarded the Silver Bay Leaf, the highest German sports award.

From 1964-68 he was West German welterweight champion five times, but failed to qualify for the 1964 Tokyo Games. In 1968, at Mexico City, he lost his first bout against upcoming bronze medal winner Volodymyr Musalimov from the Soviet Union. In 1967 and 1971 he was eliminated in the quarter finals of the Europeans.

In 2017 he died from pneumonia after a long struggle with dementia in a nursing home in Hamburg-Wandsbek. His daughter Alexandra complained about the bad nursing conditions in the home.