Renate Boesler
{{Short description|East German rower}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2018}}
{{Infobox sportsperson
| name = Renate Boesler
| image =
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| years_active = 1963–1971
| spouse = Wolfgang Gunkel
| module = {{Infobox person
| name = no
| child = yes
| relatives = Petra Boesler (niece)
Martina Boesler (niece)
}}
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| sport = Rowing
| club = Berliner TSC
| medaltemplates =
{{MedalSport|Women's rowing}}
{{MedalCountry| {{GDR}} }}
{{MedalCompetition | European Rowing Championships }}
{{MedalSilver | 1963 Moscow | Coxed quad sculls }}
{{MedalGold | 1964 Amsterdam | Coxed quad sculls }}
{{MedalSilver | 1967 Vichy | Eight }}
{{MedalGold | 1968 Berlin | Eight }}
{{MedalGold | 1969 Klagenfurt | Eight }}
{{MedalGold | 1970 Tata | Eight }}
{{MedalSilver | 1971 Copenhagen | Eight }}
}}
Renate Boesler, also referred to as Bösler and later as Gunkel, is a retired East German rower who won medals at European championships between 1963 and 1971. During that time, she became European Champion four times in two different boat classes.
Rowing career
At the 1963 European Rowing Championships in Moscow, she won a silver medal in the coxed quad sculls event with a team from Berliner TSC.{{cite web |last1=Heckert |first1=Karlheinz |title=Rudern – Europameisterschaften (Damen – Doppelvierer m.Stfr.) |url=http://www.sport-komplett.de/sport-komplett/sportarten/r/rudern/hst/72.html |website=sport-komplett.de |accessdate=22 April 2018 |language=de}} At the 1964 European Rowing Championships in Amsterdam, she won a gold medal in the same boat class but with different team members apart from Antje Thiess; this time the rowers came from several clubs.{{cite news |title=Großartiger Triumph der DDR-Ruderinnen |trans-title=Great Triumph of the East German rowers |url=http://zefys.staatsbibliothek-berlin.de/ddr-presse/ergebnisanzeige/?purl=SNP2612273X-19640804-0-8-104-0 |accessdate=23 April 2018 |work=Neue Zeit |volume=20 |issue=180 |date=4 August 1964 |page=8 |language=de}}{{registration required}} Since women's rowing had formally become a part of the European Rowing Championships in 1954, this was only the second time that East Germany had won this boat class (the previous occasion had been in 1960), with all other titles having gone to the Soviet Union. The team remained in the same composition for the 1965 rowing season and at the annual regatta for Eastern Bloc countries held at the Grünau Regatta Course, the coxed quad scull team beat the boat from the Soviet Union by two lengths.{{cite news |first=Hans |last=Allmert |title=DHfK-Achter vor Wilnjus |url=http://zefys.staatsbibliothek-berlin.de/ddr-presse/ergebnisanzeige/?purl=SNP2532889X-19650628-0-5-81-0 |accessdate=23 April 2018 |work=Neues Deutschland |volume=20 |issue=175 |date=28 June 1965 |page=5 |language=de}}{{registration required}} All East German teams stayed away from the 1965 European Rowing Championships held in Duisburg, West Germany.{{cite web |last1=Smalman-Smith |first1=Helena |title=1965 Women's European Rowing Championships |date=20 March 2017 |url=https://rowingstory.com/year-by-year/1965-2/ |publisher=Rowing Story |accessdate=22 April 2018}}
At the 1967 European Rowing Championships in Vichy, Boesler competed with the women's eight and won a silver medal.{{cite web |last1=Heckert |first1=Karlheinz |title=Rudern – Europameisterschaften (Damen – Achter) |url=http://www.sport-komplett.de/sport-komplett/sportarten/r/rudern/hst/74.html |website=sport-komplett.de |accessdate=22 April 2018 |language=de}} At the 1968 European Rowing Championships in East Berlin, Boesler won a gold medal with the women's eight. At the 1969 European Rowing Championships in Klagenfurt, the East German women's eight competed with its success and retained their European Championship title. The 1970 European Rowing Championships were held in Tata, Hungary, and the East German women's eight became European Champion for the third year running. At the 1971 European Rowing Championships in Copenhagen, Boesler was again part of the women's eight and this time, the team won a silver medal.{{cite web |title=Renate Boesler |url=http://www.worldrowing.com/athletes/athlete/1140/results/ |publisher=International Rowing Federation |accessdate=22 April 2018}} Throughout her rowing career, she started for the Berliner TSC.{{cite web |title=Medaillenspiegel |url=http://berlinertsc.de/medaillenspiegel/ |publisher=Berliner TSC |accessdate=22 April 2018 |trans-title=medal tally |language=de}} She retired after the 1972 rowing season and was celebrated alongside other retiring international rowers in May 1973.{{cite news |title=Ruderer verabschiedet |trans-title=Rowers farewelled |url=http://zefys.staatsbibliothek-berlin.de/ddr-presse/ergebnisanzeige/?purl=SNP26120215-19730521-0-7-178-0 |accessdate=23 April 2018 |work=Berliner Zeitung |volume=29 |issue=139 |date=21 May 1973 |page=7 |language=de}}{{registration required}}
Awards
File:Wolfgang Gunkel 1972.jpg, her husband, in 1972]]
In December 1963, Boesler was given the honorary award Master of Sport alongside her four team mates from Berliner TSC.{{cite news |title=94 wurden geehrt |trans-title=94 were honoured |url=http://zefys.staatsbibliothek-berlin.de/ddr-presse/ergebnisanzeige/?purl=SNP26120215-19631215-0-4-45-0 |accessdate=23 April 2018 |work=Berliner Zeitung |volume=19 |issue=344 |date=15 December 1963 |page=4 |language=de}}{{registration required}} Three of the rowers of the women's eight who won European gold in 1968 and 1969 were awarded the Medal of Merit of the GDR in January 1970: Boesler, Ursula Pankraths, and Renate Schlenzig.{{cite news |title=Hervorragende Sportler geehrt |trans-title=Excellent athletes honoured |url=http://zefys.staatsbibliothek-berlin.de/ddr-presse/ergebnisanzeige/?purl=SNP26120215-19700124-0-4-210-0 |accessdate=23 April 2018 |work=Berliner Zeitung |volume=26 |issue=24 |date=24 January 1970 |page=4 |language=de}}{{registration required}} In September 1970, six rowers of women's eight were awarded a Patriotic Order of Merit in bronze for winning three consecutive world championship titles since 1968: Gudrun Apelt, Barbara Behrend, Marita Berndt, Gabriele Rotermund, Renate Schlenzig, and Boesler.{{cite news |title=Hohe Auszeichnungen |trans-title=High awards |url=http://zefys.staatsbibliothek-berlin.de/ddr-presse/ergebnisanzeige/?purl=SNP26120215-19700919-0-4-47-0 |accessdate=23 April 2018 |work=Berliner Zeitung |volume=26 |issue=259 |date=19 September 1970 |page=4 |language=de}}{{registration required}}
Family
Boesler is the aunt of sisters Petra and Martina Boesler. Both her nieces have won Olympic rowing medals.{{cite Sports-Reference |check-wikidata=no |title=Petra Boesler |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/bo/petra-boesler-1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200418022804/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/bo/petra-boesler-1.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=18 April 2020 |accessdate=22 April 2018}}{{cite Sports-Reference |check-wikidata=no |title=Martina Boesler |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/bo/martina-boesler-1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200418023022/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/bo/martina-boesler-1.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=18 April 2020 |accessdate=22 April 2018}} Some time between August 1971 and May 1973, Boesler married fellow international rower Wolfgang Gunkel.{{cite news |first=Cornelia |last=Mollenschott |title=Einige Fragen an |trans-title=A few questions for |url=http://zefys.staatsbibliothek-berlin.de/ddr-presse/ergebnisanzeige/?purl=SNP2532889X-19750701-0-5-76-0 |accessdate=23 April 2018 |work=Neues Deutschland |volume=30 |issue=154 |date=1 July 1975 |page=5 |language=de}}{{registration required}}
References
{{Reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boesler, Renate}}
Category:Year of birth missing (living people)
Category:East German female rowers