Thomas Lange
Encyclopedia
Thomas Lange (born 27 February 1964) is a German
rower
who won two gold and one bronze Olympic
medals in the single scull. He was born in Eisleben
.
Lange, along with legends, Pertti Karppinen
, Peter-Michael Kolbe
, and Vyacheslav Ivanov
are the only rowers to win medals in the single scull in three different Olympics.
His first international appearance was at the 1980 Junior World Rowing Championships
- winning gold medal in the double scull (2x) and besting the favorite Steven Redgrave in doing so. He then went on to win the singles title in the next two Junior World Championships.
He first competed at the senior level in 1983, and at the age of 19, won the double scull at the World Rowing Championships
with Uwe Heppner
, which they repeated in 1985. Lange and Heppner would have been the favorites for the 1984 Summer Olympics
in Los Angeles
, but East Germany chose to boycott the games.
In 1986, Lange moved into the single scull. However, illness prevented him from competing that year. But in 1987 he was healthy and he won his first World Championship in the single scull besting Pertti Karppinen
and Peter-Michael Kolbe
who between then had won 10 of the previous 12 World and Olympic titles. Lange repeated this feat by winning the 1988 Summer Olympics
in Seoul
. In 1989 he again won the World Championship.
But East Germany was disintegrating and Lange was beginning his studies as a Medical Doctor. His father was a member of the Stasi
who committed suicide the day the Berlin Wall
fell. Despite his demanding schedule and the emotional angst of his country's disintegration, in 1990, with Stephan Ulrich, Lange won a silver medal in the Double scull.
In 1991, representing the new German nation (what had been West Germany), Lange again won the Gold medal in the single scull at the World Championships. At the 1992 Summer Olympics
in Barcelona
, Lange was a repeat winner in the single. For Lange, this was his fifth straight (non-consecutive) World Championship or Olympic victory in the single scull.
Lange would go on to take third at the 1993 World championships, take 1994 off to concentrate on his medical studies, finish out of the running in the 1995 World Championships, and come back to claim a bronze medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics
behind Switzerland's Xeno Müller
and Canada's Derek Porter
.
Today, Lange is a medical doctor practicing in Ratzeburg
, Germany, and he still rows occasionally.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
rower
Sport rowing
Rowing is a sport in which athletes race against each other on rivers, on lakes or on the ocean, depending upon the type of race and the discipline. The boats are propelled by the reaction forces on the oar blades as they are pushed against the water...
who won two gold and one bronze Olympic
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
medals in the single scull. He was born in Eisleben
Eisleben
Eisleben is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is famous as the hometown of Martin Luther, hence its official name is Lutherstadt Eisleben. As of 2005, Eisleben had a population of 24,552...
.
Lange, along with legends, Pertti Karppinen
Pertti Karppinen
Pertti Johannes Karppinen is a Finnish rower who is legendary for his three consecutive Olympic Gold medals in Single Sculls in 1976, 1980, and 1984. He also won World Championships in 1979 and 1985. He once held the world record in indoor rowing. Karppinen's style was to row a steady race and...
, Peter-Michael Kolbe
Peter-Michael Kolbe
Peter-Michael Kolbe is a German rower and is one of the greatest single scullers ever. And, with the possible exception of Australia's Stuart Mackenzie, the greatest to have never won an Olympic Gold Medal...
, and Vyacheslav Ivanov
Vyacheslav Nikolayevich Ivanov
Vyacheslav Nikolayevich Ivanov is known to most of the non-Russian speaking world as Vyacheslav Ivanov, was one of the most accomplished rowers of his generation...
are the only rowers to win medals in the single scull in three different Olympics.
His first international appearance was at the 1980 Junior World Rowing Championships
Junior World Rowing Championships
The World Rowing Junior Championships is an international rowing regatta organized by FISA . A rower or coxswain shall be classified as a Junior until 31st December of the year in which he reaches the age of 18. After that date, he shall be classified as an Under 23 rower...
- winning gold medal in the double scull (2x) and besting the favorite Steven Redgrave in doing so. He then went on to win the singles title in the next two Junior World Championships.
He first competed at the senior level in 1983, and at the age of 19, won the double scull at the World Rowing Championships
World Rowing Championships
The World Rowing Championships is an international rowing regatta organized by FISA . It is a week long event held at the end of the northern hemisphere summer and in non-Olympic years is the highlight of the international rowing calendar.The first event was held in Lucerne, Switzerland in 1962...
with Uwe Heppner
Uwe Heppner
Uwe Heppner is a German rower who competed for East Germany in the 1980 Summer Olympics and in the 1988 Summer Olympics...
, which they repeated in 1985. Lange and Heppner would have been the favorites for the 1984 Summer Olympics
1984 Summer Olympics
The 1984 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Los Angeles, California, United States in 1984...
in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, but East Germany chose to boycott the games.
In 1986, Lange moved into the single scull. However, illness prevented him from competing that year. But in 1987 he was healthy and he won his first World Championship in the single scull besting Pertti Karppinen
Pertti Karppinen
Pertti Johannes Karppinen is a Finnish rower who is legendary for his three consecutive Olympic Gold medals in Single Sculls in 1976, 1980, and 1984. He also won World Championships in 1979 and 1985. He once held the world record in indoor rowing. Karppinen's style was to row a steady race and...
and Peter-Michael Kolbe
Peter-Michael Kolbe
Peter-Michael Kolbe is a German rower and is one of the greatest single scullers ever. And, with the possible exception of Australia's Stuart Mackenzie, the greatest to have never won an Olympic Gold Medal...
who between then had won 10 of the previous 12 World and Olympic titles. Lange repeated this feat by winning the 1988 Summer Olympics
1988 Summer Olympics
The 1988 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad, were an all international multi-sport events celebrated from September 17 to October 2, 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. They were the second summer Olympic Games to be held in Asia and the first since the 1964 Summer Olympics...
in Seoul
Seoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
. In 1989 he again won the World Championship.
But East Germany was disintegrating and Lange was beginning his studies as a Medical Doctor. His father was a member of the Stasi
Stasi
The Ministry for State Security The Ministry for State Security The Ministry for State Security (German: Ministerium für Staatssicherheit (MfS), commonly known as the Stasi (abbreviation , literally State Security), was the official state security service of East Germany. The MfS was headquartered...
who committed suicide the day the Berlin Wall
Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall was a barrier constructed by the German Democratic Republic starting on 13 August 1961, that completely cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin...
fell. Despite his demanding schedule and the emotional angst of his country's disintegration, in 1990, with Stephan Ulrich, Lange won a silver medal in the Double scull.
In 1991, representing the new German nation (what had been West Germany), Lange again won the Gold medal in the single scull at the World Championships. At the 1992 Summer Olympics
1992 Summer Olympics
The 1992 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event celebrated in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, in 1992. The International Olympic Committee voted in 1986 to separate the Summer and Winter Games, which had been held in the same...
in Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
, Lange was a repeat winner in the single. For Lange, this was his fifth straight (non-consecutive) World Championship or Olympic victory in the single scull.
Lange would go on to take third at the 1993 World championships, take 1994 off to concentrate on his medical studies, finish out of the running in the 1995 World Championships, and come back to claim a bronze medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics
1996 Summer Olympics
The 1996 Summer Olympics of Atlanta, officially known as the Games of the XXVI Olympiad and unofficially known as the Centennial Olympics, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1996 in Atlanta, Georgia, United States....
behind Switzerland's Xeno Müller
Xeno Müller
Xeno Müller is a Swiss rower and Olympic gold medallist.His first international appearance was at the 1990 Junior World Rowing Championships - winning bronze in his single scull ....
and Canada's Derek Porter
Derek Porter
Derek Nesbitt-Porter is a gold medal-winning Olympic rower from Canada. He was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, and his father Hugh rowed for the United Kingdom at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games, winning a bronze medal in the eight-oared race.Porter won his gold medal in the...
.
Today, Lange is a medical doctor practicing in Ratzeburg
Ratzeburg
Ratzeburg is a town in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is surrounded by four lakes—the resulting isthmuses between the lakes form the access lanes to the town. Ratzeburg is the capital of the Kreis of Lauenburg.-History:...
, Germany, and he still rows occasionally.
Achievements
- OlympicRowing at the Summer OlympicsRowing at the Summer Olympics has been part of the competition since the 1900 Summer Olympics. Rowing was on the program at the 1896 Summer Olympics but was cancelled due to bad weather. Only men were allowed to compete until the women's events were introduced at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal...
Medals: 2 Gold, 1 Bronze - World ChampionshipWorld Rowing ChampionshipsThe World Rowing Championships is an international rowing regatta organized by FISA . It is a week long event held at the end of the northern hemisphere summer and in non-Olympic years is the highlight of the international rowing calendar.The first event was held in Lucerne, Switzerland in 1962...
Medals: 5 Gold, 1 Silver, 1 Bronze - Junior World ChampionshipJunior World Rowing ChampionshipsThe World Rowing Junior Championships is an international rowing regatta organized by FISA . A rower or coxswain shall be classified as a Junior until 31st December of the year in which he reaches the age of 18. After that date, he shall be classified as an Under 23 rower...
Medals: 3 Gold
Olympic Games
- 1996 - Bronze, Single Scull
- 1992 - Gold, Single Scull
- 1988 - Gold, Single Scull
- 1984 - Member East German team (boycott)
World Championships
- 1995 - 5th, Single Scull
- 1993 - Bronze, Single Scull
- 1991 - Gold, Single Scull
- 1990 - Silver, Double Scull
- 1989 - Gold, Single Scull
- 1987 - Gold, Single Scull
- 1985 - Gold, Double Scull
- 1983 - Gold, Double Scull
Junior World Championships
- 1980 - Gold, Double Scull
- 1981 - Gold, Single Scull
- 1982 - Gold, Single Scull