Jürgen Harpke

Jürgen Harpke was a flatwater canoeist who, with Helmut Wagner, finished sixth in the C2-1,000 meters at the 1968 Mexico Olympics. Two years later, he narrowly missed the podium after finishing fourth in the C1-1,000 meters at the World Championships.

In 1968 and 1970 Harpke captured the East German C1-1,000 titles, and in 1967 and 1969 won the C2 over both 1,000 and 10,000 meters. From 1967-69 he was the C1-500 meters champion. He retired in 1972 and studied sports science at the DHfK in Leipzig. He then became one of the most successful Canadian coaches in East Germany.