Peter-Michael Kolbe is considered the greatest rower to have never won an Olympic gold medal. As a single sculler, Kolbe’s failure to do so was because of his great rivalry with the Finn, Pertti Karppinen. Kolbe trailed Karpinnen to silver medals in 1976 and 1984, and in 1980, Kolbe missed the Olympics because of the boycott. In 1988, Kolbe again finished second in the Olympic single sculls, this time to the GDR’s Thomas Lange.
In the World Championships, however, Kolbe was nonpareil, winning the single sculls five times (1975, 1978, 1981, 1983, and 1986), and earning two silver and one bronze medal in the event (silver – 1979, 87; bronze – 1985). Kolbe also won the European championships in 1973, and at Henley, won the Diamond Challenge Sculls in 1987. Kolbe moved to Oslo in 1982 to live with his Norwegian wife, whom he met when she was a journalist at the 1975 World Championships. The same year he was elected West German Sportsman of the Year.
West Germany