Rudolf Vesper is a former Olympic wrestler

Wrestling

Wrestling is a form of grappling type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. A wrestling bout is a physical competition, between two competitors or sparring partners, who attempt to gain and maintain a superior position...

 for East Germany. Born in Niemil

Niemil

Niemil is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Oława, within Oława County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. Prior to 1945 it was in Germany. It lies approximately south of Oława and south-east of the regional capital Wrocław....

, Lower Silesia

Lower Silesia

Lower Silesia ; is the northwestern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia; Upper Silesia is to the southeast.Throughout its history Lower Silesia has been under the control of the medieval Kingdom of Poland, the Kingdom of Bohemia and the Austrian Habsburg Monarchy from 1526...

, Vesper competed for the Unified German team

Germany at the 1964 Summer Olympics

Athletes from East Germany and West Germany competed together as the United Team of Germany for the last time at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan...

 in the 1964 Summer Olympics

1964 Summer Olympics

The 1964 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Tokyo, Japan in 1964. Tokyo had been awarded with the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this honor was subsequently passed to Helsinki because of Japan's...

 in Tokyo

Tokyo

, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...

, and then East Germany

East Germany at the 1968 Summer Olympics

Athletes from East Germany competed at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, Mexico. 226 competitors, 186 men and 40 women, took part in 124 events in 18 sports...

 in 1968

1968 Summer Olympics

The 1968 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Mexico City, Mexico in October 1968. The 1968 Games were the first Olympic Games hosted by a developing country, and the first Games hosted by a Spanish-speaking country...

 in Mexico City

Mexico City

Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...

. Both times he competed in the men's welterweight

Welterweight

Welterweight is a weight class division in combat sports. Originally the term "welterweight" was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like kickboxing, taekwondo and mixed martial arts also began to use it for their own weight division system...

 division of the Greco-Roman

Greco-Roman wrestling

Greco-Roman wrestling is a style of wrestling that is practised worldwide. It was contested at the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 and has been included in every edition of the summer Olympics held since 1908. Two wrestlers are scored for their performance in three two-minute periods, which can...

 wrestling

Wrestling at the Summer Olympics

Wrestling has been contested at the Summer Olympic Games since the sport was introduced in the ancient Olympic Games in 708 BC. When the modern Olympic Games resumed in Athens in 1896, wrestling became a focus of the Games, with the exception of the 1900 Summer Olympics when wrestling did not...

 event.

The first time Vesper competed, in 1964, he did not win a medal. However, the second time, in 1968, Vesper won a gold medal in the Greco-Roman wrestling event.

Vesper also competed for East Germany in the FILA Wrestling World Championships

FILA Wrestling World Championships

FILA Wrestling World Championships is the Amateur Wrestling World Championship organized by the International Federation of Associated Wrestling Styles . The men's Greco-Roman tournament began in 1904...

. Upon his first appearance, 1963

1963 FILA Wrestling World Championships

The following is the final results of the 1963 FILA Wrestling World Championships. Freestyle competition were held in Sofia, Bulgaria and Greco-Roman competition were held in Helsingborg, Sweden.-Medal table:-Freestyle:-Greco-Roman:-See also:...

, in Helsingborg

Helsingborg

Helsingborg is a city and the seat of Helsingborg Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 97,122 inhabitants in 2010. Helsingborg is the centre of an area in the Øresund region of about 320,000 inhabitants in north-west Scania, and is Sweden's closest point to Denmark, with the Danish city...

, he came in second in the Greco-Roman event. He competed in the 78kg

Kilogram

The kilogram or kilogramme , also known as the kilo, is the base unit of mass in the International System of Units and is defined as being equal to the mass of the International Prototype Kilogram , which is almost exactly equal to the mass of one liter of water...

 weight class and the Senior

Seniority

Seniority is the concept of a person or group of people being in charge or in command of another person or group. This control is often granted to the senior person due to experience or length of service in a given position, but it is not uncommon for a senior person to have less experience or...

s age group. His second appearance, in 1967

1967 FILA Wrestling World Championships

The following is the final results of the 1967 FILA Wrestling World Championships. Freestyle competition were held in New Delhi, India and Greco-Roman competition were held in Bucharest, Romania.-Medal table:-Freestyle:-Greco-Roman:-See also:...

, held in Bucharest

Bucharest

Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....

, also resulted in a silver medal in the Greco-Roman event. He competed in the Seniors age group and the 78 kg weight class.

Sources