German sprint canoer Björn Goldschmidt placed eighth in the kayak singles over 500 metres at the 2004 Athens Olympics. He then moved to the kayak fours and crewed Norman Bröckl, Torsten Eckbrett, and Lutz Altepost at the 2008 Beijing Olympics winning the bronze medal over 1,000 metres. The crew was therefore awarded the Silver Bay Leaf, Germany’s highest sports award.
In 2005 and 2007, Goldschmidt won a gold and a silver medal respectively at the Sprint Canoe World Championships in the kayak fours over 200 metres. At European Championships, he won one silver medal (2008 in the kayak fours over 1,000 metres) and two bronzes (2005 in the kayak fours over 200 metres and 2006 in the kayak fours over 1,000 metres). His brother Arnd was also a canoe racer.
Germany