Bernd Kannenberg at the 1972 Olympics (© Getty Images)
50 years ago today, West German Bernd Kannenberg, in a head-to-head battle with Venyamin Soldatenko of the Soviet Union, won the 1972 Olympic 50km race walk gold in what was essentially a ‘gun to tape’ victory.
Kannenberg was lucky to be alive, never mind toeing the start line of the Olympic 50km race walk in Munich.
At the age of three, Kannenberg was one of a handful of survivors fished out of icy waters at the end of World War II when his boat carrying refugees was torpedoed and sank.
He had been forced to flee with his grandmother and a cousin from his native city of Königsberg, today's Kaliningrad, as the Soviet army closed in.
All three were aboard the MV Wilhelm Gustloff on 30 January 1945, when the boat used as a refugee transporter was targeted by Russian submarines in the Baltic Sea and quickly sank. His grandmother and 9600 out of an estimated 10,000 passengers went down with the ship.
The plan to rescue the trapped German civilians was called Operation Hannibal – and had they used elephants, like the famed ancient fighter instead of the doomed ship, they would have been no worse off.
A series of military blunders framed the disaster, and as one might imagine it stayed with Kannenberg for the rest of his life.
He and his cousin found a new home in Thuringia. In 1955 he emigrated with what remained of his family from East to West Germany.
Latecomer
Kannenberg was no child prodigy when it came to athletics. In fact, he didn’t take up serious race walking until he was 27 – and maybe that was a good thing.
There was no early burn-out, so that by training up to six hours a day he achieved a world record 50km on 27 May 1972, just three years from the moment he got serious. And some record it was.
That 3:52:45 in Bremen improved the existing mark by more than eight minutes from the official time set by Soviet Union’s Mikhail Lavrov in 1961. Even an unofficial 3:55:36 from Gennadiy Agapov, also USSR, was nearly three minutes in arrears.
Kannenberg had taken part at the German Championships for the first time just two years before. He finished third in the 20km and 50km in 1971 and was three-time German champion in 1972.
Too good in Munich
It became apparent that what would become known as ‘Golden Sunday’ for the hosts would result in a head-to-head battle between the West German and Venyamin Soldatenko from the Soviet Union.
The latter was the existing European champion from the year before in Helsinki, and from the gun the pair set off leaving the rest of the 36-strong field for dead.
At 10km, both clocked 45:55. The closest pursuers were Otto Barch of the Soviet Union and Peter Selzer from East Germany in 47:10 – more than a minute in arrears.
The course around the Olympic Park outside the Munich stadium was nothing like a modern circuit. For a start, it was a 5km loop, as opposed to the modern one-kilometre up-and-down race.
Race walkers later complained of the gravelly surface in places. There was even a small bridge to negotiate each lap.
Kannenberg knew all about the bridge. He had started the shorter race, but – either because he reportedly stumbled and fell or just didn't feel he had the legs – pulled out shortly after 10km.
Either way, it acted as a dress rehearsal for the longer event, and by 20km (1:32:59) the pair locked at the hip had two plus minutes over Larry Young from the USA (1:35:08), the 1968 Olympic bronze medallist.
Nothing separated Kannenberg and Soldatenko at 30km – 2:20:03 – but the cracks started to show six kilometres later.
The 1.76m (5ft 9in) German edged a couple of metres in front, and by 38km had forged a decisive gap.
Defending champion Christoph Höhne, who was to finish a lowly 14th this time, remarked: “We did the same work; the same kilometres, but Bernd was so much faster than me.”
With two circuits, and 10km left, the eventual winner was 21 seconds ahead, 3:07:52 to 3:08:13, and fast losing his shadow.
By the time Kannenberg re-entered the stadium to cross the line first in 3:56:11.6 – more than two minutes ahead of Soldatenko – that Golden Sunday was in full swing.
Not only was there gold for the German, there were first places also for Hildegard Falck in the women’s 800m and Klaus Wolfermann in the men’s javelin, plus a silver for Heide Rosendahl in the pentathlon behind Great Britain’s Mary Peters.
Young sensibly kept his powder dry and, like in Mexico, came through to take bronze for the second Olympics in a row.
There’s film footage of him being misdirected as he hits the track, but he was nearly a minute clear of fourth-placed Barch. The US race walker remembers it vividly.
“I thought one of the judges indicated I was supposed to move to the inside lane,” he said. “The next judge directed me back to the outside lane. I probably lost a few seconds there, but I was most worried they might disqualify me. To my amazement, the head (Russian) judge came up to me after the finish, and told me I had the best technique in the race.”
Tragedy
The glory of that Sunday was shattered just two days later by the infamous Munich massacre that resulted in 17 deaths: six Israeli coaches, five Israeli athletes, one West German police officer, and five Black September terrorists.
There was an immediate doubt as to whether the Games would continue. But eventually the decision was taken to see out the remaining events.
Young’s response was typical of many others caught up in the tragedy.
“I’ll never forget coming out of the dorm the morning of the attack, not knowing it had just happened. I was feeling pretty good about winning my second bronze medal, but then someone passing by told me the Israeli athletes and coaches were being held hostage in their dorm. It was hard to believe, but then I saw one of the masked terrorists standing on the balcony with a rifle, he could have shot me easily.”
“I left the village and later they made everyone leave. Shaul Ladany, who was a good friend, and who competed in the 50km for Israel, managed to escape out a window to safety. I’ll never forget the experience.”
A short, glorious career
After Munich, Kannenberg’s comet burned briefly.
He earned silver at the 1974 European Championships in Rome, and set 19 German records and 10 world records.
At the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, he competed at 20km, the only race walking event of those Games, but severe pain forced him to drop out. He retired from competition two years later. The gap between his first and final races was barely nine years.
That six-hours-a-day intensity meant groin, hip and hernia problems plagued him throughout the rest of his life. His poor health was such that he even gave up the role of national coach after just a few years. Before his death on 13 January 2021, aged 78, he had long abandoned gentle cycling and walking his dog.
But Young fondly remembers that glorious Sunday, 50 years ago.
“My encounter with Kannenberg was brief, but he seemed to be a nice guy,” he says.
“I was surprised when, as he shook the hands of both Soldatenko and me, he pulled us both up on the first place victory stand with him for the national anthem.”
“He told the press afterwards that he had such respect for our performances that he wanted us up there with him. I don’t think that’s ever happened before, so that says something about his humility and sportsmanship”.
Paul Warburton for World Athletics Heritage
