Memorial Page for Josef Benz

Josef Benz (born 20 May 1944 in Zürich; died there on 5 February 2021), usually known as Sepp Benz, was a Swiss bobsledder and later sports official. As brakeman and crew member in Erich Schärer's team, he won two-man bobsleigh gold and four-man silver at the 1980 Olympic Winter Games in Lake Placid. In total he won four Olympic medals.

Zürich and entry into bobsleigh

Benz competed for Bob-Club Zürichsee. Before becoming visible in international bobsleigh, he worked for the postal service; this later led to his nickname as a fast postman. In the bob his tasks lay in power, start rhythm and braking. This role strongly influences a team's success, although outside the sport it is often less visible than the pilot's position.

Successes with Erich Schärer

In 1975 Benz won the four-man world title with Werner Camichel, Erich Schärer and Peter Schärer. In the following years he regularly raced with Schärer and won further medals at world and European championships. At the 1976 Olympic Winter Games in Innsbruck he won two-man bronze and four-man silver with Schärer.

Lake Placid 1980

At the 1980 Winter Games in Lake Placid, Benz won two-man gold with Erich Schärer on 16 February. One week later four-man silver followed with Schärer, Ulrich Bächli and Rudolf Marti. Benz thereby belonged to a Swiss bobsleigh generation that spent years regularly reaching the medal places in international competitions.

After active competition

After his time as an athlete, Benz remained connected with sliding sports. He worked as a coach, was active in the Swiss federation and later took on tasks in the International Luge Federation FIL. His official work led him into organisational questions of bobsleigh and luge: competitions, tracks, schedules and cooperation between federations.

Later years

Even in later life Benz remained present around Swiss Sliding and FIL. Reports after his death emphasised his work behind the scenes, including around World Cup events. This second career turned the former crew member into an organiser who translated his knowledge from the ice track into federation work.

Farewell

Josef Benz died in Zürich on 5 February 2021. He was 76 years old. His career connected Olympic bobsleigh medals, teamwork with Erich Schärer and decades of work for Swiss and international sliding sport.