Otto Stekl rowed at the University of Pennsylvania and for Hartford Barge Club. He graduated from Penn in 1978 and then earned an MBA from the University of Connecticut. Stekl was on the US national team from 1978-84. He won a gold medal in the eight at the 1979 Pan American Games and competed at three World Championships, in 1978, 1979, and 1983. In 1980 Stekl was in a coxed four that won the European Championships in Amsterdam. He also made the ill-fated 1980 US Olympic team. During his rowing career Stekl worked as a compensation analyst for Travelers Insurance Company. He later settled in Austria where he works in management consulting. Stekl also coaches rowing at Ruderverein Ister.
United States