Raimund Bethge

Raimund Bethge (born 7 July 1947 in Schwedt, Brandenburg) is an East German bobsledder who competed in the late 1970s. He won a complete set of medals at the FIBT World Championships with a gold in four-man (1977), a silver in two-man (1978, and a bronze in four-man (1978).

Bethge also competed at the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, finishing fourth in the four-man event and seventh in the two-man event.

Prior to his role in bobsleigh, Bethge was national champion in the 110 meter hurdles in 1969, and finished fifth in the event at the 1969 European Championships in Athletics in Athens.

Bethge was forced to retire from bobsleigh in 1979 following a bus accident. He became a trainer for the bobsleigh federation in East Germany, then for unified Germany after East and West Germany reunified in 1990. One of the athletes he trained was Wolfgang Hoppe, who would later become a coach for the German team. Another would be Christoph Langen, another successful bobsledder.

Bethge was named trainer of the year in Germany in 2006 as a result of his successes that included 80 men's bobsleigh medals overall (Winter Olympics, World championship, and European championship), 11 women's bobsleigh medals overall, and 11 skeleton medals overall. He was able to attend the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin despite breaking both of his legs after being hit by an Australian bobsled during a practice run at Cesana Pariol on November 30, 2005.