Memorial Page for Jochen Bachfeld

Jochen Bachfeld (born 17 December 1952 in Sülte near Schwerin; died 12 March 2026) was a German boxer from East Germany. He represented SC Traktor Schwerin and won Olympic gold in the welterweight division at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal. Four years earlier he had also competed at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich.

From judo to boxing

Bachfeld began with judo as a child at SG Dynamo Schwerin. In 1962 he moved to boxing in Hagenow, and in 1966 he joined SC Traktor Schwerin. There he was coached first by Bruno Guse and later by Paul Nickel. As a junior he drew international attention in 1970 when he won silver in the light-flyweight class at the European Junior Championships in Miskolc.

Munich 1972 and the road to Montreal

In 1972 Bachfeld won the East German featherweight title and competed at the Olympic Games in Munich. There he defeated Peter Prause of West Germany and William Taylor of Great Britain, then lost to Romania's Gabriel Pometcu and finished equal ninth. In the following years he moved up to welterweight. In 1976 he won another East German title and qualified for Montreal.

Olympic gold in 1976

In Montreal Bachfeld boxed in the class up to 67 kilograms. After victories over Ali Bahri Khomani, Athanasios Iliadis, Valery Rachkov and Carmen Rinke, he reached the semi-final. There he narrowly defeated Victor Zilberman of Romania. On 31 July 1976 he won the final against Pedro Gamarro of Venezuela on points and took Olympic gold for East Germany.

After competition

After further appearances, including the 1978 World Championships in Belgrade, Bachfeld ended his sporting career in 1980 after long-running injury problems. He trained in commerce, studied at the German University of Physical Culture in Leipzig and later worked as a sports teacher, educational therapist and hotel manager. In Schwerin he also stayed connected with boxing as a youth coach.

Farewell

Jochen Bachfeld died on 12 March 2026 at the age of 73. His sporting life remains closely connected with Schwerin, East German amateur boxing and the Olympic success in Montreal.