Renate Stecher

Renate Stecher

Medal record
Women's Athletics
Competitor for  East Germany
Olympic Games
Gold	1972 Munich	100 metres
Gold	1972 Munich	200 metres
Gold	1976 Montreal	4x100 m relay
Silver	1972 Munich	4x100 m relay
Silver	1976 Montreal	100 metres
Bronze	1976 Montreal	200 metres
European Athletics Championships
Gold	1969 Athens	4x100m relay
Gold	1971 Helsinki	100 metres
Gold	1971 Helsinki	200 metres
Gold	1974 Rome	4x100 m relay
Silver	1969 Athens	200 metres
Silver	1971 Helsinki	4x100 m relay
Silver	1974 Rome	100 metres
Silver	1974 Rome	200 metres

Renate Stecher (born 12 May 1950 in Süptitz) is a German (former East German) athlete and a triple Olympic champion.

Biography

Born as Renate Meißner, she was a very talented athlete, also competing in the high jump and pentathlon. She debuted internationally at the 1969 European Championships, where she - as a last minute substitute - won a silver medal in the 200 m and a gold in the 4 x 100 m relay.

In 1970 she was the World Student Games Champion in both the 100 metres and 200 metres.

At the next European Championships, in 1971, she won both the 100 and 200 m and the silver in the relay. At that time, she was already competing as Renate Stecher, having married hurdler Gerd Stecher the previous year.

At the 1972 Summer Olympics, Stecher repeated that performance. She won the 100 m in time of 11.07, which was only in 1976 recognised as world record, which had been measured in tenths of seconds before (the times in tenths were later corrected). She also equalled the world record in the 200 meters with a time of 22.40. The following year, Stecher set (hand timed) world records in both sprint events, also becoming the first woman to beat 11 seconds. She clocked 10.9 and 10.8 for the 100 metres and 22.1 for the 200 metres.

In Rome at the 1974 European Championships she was defeated in both the 100 m and 200 m, by Irena Szewińska of Poland and had to settle for silver in both distances. However the GDR 4 x 100 m relay team, in which Stecher ran the second leg, won the Gold in world record time.

At the 1976 Summer Olympics, Stecher again competed in the three sprint events, winning medals in all three once again. She was beaten for the 100 m title by Annegret Richter, and came third in a 200 m race with five German women in the first five positions. With the 4 x 100 m relay team they beat West Germany, taking revenge for the race four years earlier.

She competed for the club SC Motor Jena during her active career.

Following the release of East German secret service files, it was revealed that many of the country's athletes were involved with a state-sponsored drug program. The files document that Stecher had wanted to step down her drug use after the 1972 Olympics, so that she could safely have children.^[1] Raelene Boyle, who had finished second to Stecher in both the 100 and 200 metres at the Olympics, stated that she felt cheated, but that Stecher may still have bested her over the 100 m without the use of performance-enhancing drugs.^[2]

References

Records
Preceded by Eva Glesková	Women's 100 m World Record Holder 30 June 1973 – 13 June 1976	Succeeded by Inge Helten
Sporting positions
Preceded by Unknown	Women's 200 m Best Year Performance 1972 – 1973	Succeeded by Irena Szewińska
Preceded by Irena Szewińska	Women's 200m Best Year Performance 1975	Succeeded by Bärbel Wöckel