Willi Padge was a German rower who was born on October 4, 1943. He was at the 1960 Olympics in Rome and won a gold medal for Germany. It is important to take note of the fact that Will Padge started his career with the Ratzeburg rowing club.
He was the helmsman in the team that had been newly formed by Coach Karl Adam in 1958. The team won the German Championships and a year later, Coach Karl Adam formed eight of rowers from Ratzeburg Rowing Club and from ATV Ditmarsia Kiel.
The likes of Klaus Bittner, Karl-Heinz Hopp, Hans Lenk, Manfred Rulffs, Frank Schepke, Kraft Schepke , Walter Schroder and Karl-Heinrich von Groddeck were the teammates of Willi Padge.
The eight also annexed the European Championship in 1959. The victory recorded by the eight was met by a tremendous response from the media. Willi Padge together with the Germany Eight, received the Silver Laurel Leaf on December 9, 1960.
The team in 1960 also won the German championships. It then qualified for the Olympics Games. At the Olympics, the eighth boat won its preliminary heat and won in the final in a time of 5:57, 18 minutes ahead of the boat from Canada; winning Team of the Year in the process.
Notably, Willi Padge joined Ratzeburg Rc as a cox. It must be noted that while with Ratzeburg RC, he won a major international title every year right from 1958 to 1961.
He won the European Title in 1958 in the coxless fours. He was also a member of the eights that dominantly won the European title as well as the 1960 Olympic Gold. It must be noted that the 1960 Ratzeburg team was called Ratzeburg Crew. The members of the Ratzeburg Crew originated from Ratzeburg as well as Ditmarsia Kiel Clubs.
Willi Padge Cause of Death
Willi Padge was reported dead on September 17, 2023. He stood at 168 centimeters and weighed 56 kilograms. The cause of his death is yet to be discussed.
Reference :
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willi_Padge
