Marlies KANTHAK

East German sports shooter Marlies Kanthak was married, firstly to her teammate Hans-Jürgen Helbig, and secondly to sprinter Eugen Ray, who moved to bobsleigh in 1983. He was killed in 1986 as a member of the People's Police in a rescue operation. Only five months later, his son was born. Kanthak later studied psychology and graduated at the beginning of the 1990s. She then worked with addiction treatment, and founded her own practice at Döbeln in 2007.

Kanthak participated in the 1976 Montréal Games, where she finished a disappointing 32nd and 51st in the small-bore rifle events three positions and prone, respectively. During her career she won two World Championships and four Europeans. She also won more than 30 East German national titles. Kanthak took part in the 1992 Barcelona Games as an international judge.