Matthes, Roland

Roland Matthes, (born November 17, 1950, Erfurt, East Germany—died December 20, 2019, Wertheim, Baden-Württemberg, Germany), East German swimmer who was considered one of the greatest backstrokers of all time. Undefeated in major backstroke competitions between 1967 and 1974, Matthes set 16 world records and won 8 Olympic medals.

At the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City, Matthes won gold medals in both the 100-metre and 200-metre backstroke, a feat he repeated at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich. He swam the first leg of the 4 × 100-metre medley relay in world record times in both 1968 and 1972, leading the East German team to silver medals. Matthes’ swimming style—characterized by a deceptively casual but powerful stroke, a long follow-through, and exceptional timing—lent itself well to other strokes, and he won a bronze medal at the 1972 Games in the 4 × 100-metre freestyle. Between 1967 and 1973, Matthes took the 100-metre backstroke world record from 58.4 to 56.3 seconds and the 200-metre mark from 2:07.9 to 2:01.87.

Weakened by health problems and distracted by the demands of being an East German celebrity, Matthes won only a bronze in the 100-metre backstroke at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal and did not place in the 200-metre. Shortly thereafter he retired from competitive swimming. Two years later he married his teammate Kornelia Ender; the couple divorced in 1982.