Whitewater slalom singles appeared for the first time at the 1972 München Olympics, where canoe slalom events were held on the Augsburg course (and for the last time until 1992). West Germany’s Reinhold Kauder was the reigning C-1 World Champion but East German Reinhard Eiben, however, was in first after run one, with Kauder in second and only 0.39 points behind, and another East German, Jochen Förster in third. Eiben recorded an even better score in the second run to earn a well-deserved gold medal, while Kauder failed to improve upon his point total and had to settle for silver.
Kauder won the silver medal at the 1969 Worlds in the C-1 and a gold medal with the C-1 team. In 1971 he also won a silver with the C-1 team. Kauder was West German champion in 1972 and 1973. He was inducted into the German Canoe Slalom Hall of Fame and was awarded the Silver Bay Leaf, the highest sports award in Germany. By profession, he was first a nurse and then trained as a massage therapist and physiotherapist. He was then employed as a medical superintendent.
West Germany