German · Schwedt, Germany · Born 12 March 1988German sprint canoeist and three-time Olympic champion who became the first paddler in 64 years to defend the C-1 1,000m Olympic title, closing a 25-year career as one of the sport's most decorated athletes.
Sebastian Brendel was born on 12 March 1988 in Schwedt, Germany, and took up canoeing at age eight after trying football, karate, and athletics, moving to Potsdam three years later to attend a school for talented young athletes. He made his international debut in 2007, winning World Championship silver in the C-4 500m, and set the C-1 1,000m world record at the 2014 World Championships in Moscow. Brendel won his first Olympic gold in the C-1 1,000m at the 2012 London Games, then defended it at the 2016 Rio Olympics - becoming the first paddler in 64 years to successfully defend that Olympic title - while also winning a second gold in the C-2 1,000m alongside Jan Vandrey. He added a bronze in the C-2 1,000m at the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics with partner Tim Hecker, giving him three Olympic golds and four total Olympic medals across four Games. Across his career, Brendel won 13 World Championship gold medals among 26 total world medals, and was named the German Olympic Committee's Champion of the Year in 2015, also receiving the Silver Laurel Leaf, Germany's highest sporting honor. He competed at a fifth Olympics at Paris 2024, finishing eighth in the C-1 1,000m at age 36, and announced his retirement in 2025 to take up a position as a police commissioner with the German Federal Police, while continuing to coach at his boyhood club, KC Potsdam. In November 2025, he was chosen as the International Canoe Federation's Athletes' Committee Chair for 2025-2029.
Becoming the first paddler in 64 years to defend the Olympic C-1 1,000m title, part of a three-gold Olympic career across four Games
How They Played
Powerful, technically precise canoeist known for exceptional endurance over 1,000m and remarkable longevity at the top of the sport across two decades
Lasting Impact
Regarded as one of the greatest canoeists of his generation, celebrated for his rivalry and mutual respect with Brazil's Isaquias Queiroz, who called him a benchmark for excellence in the sport
Career Honours
- 3x Olympic Gold Medalist (2012, 2016x2)
- First paddler in 64 years to defend the Olympic C-1 1,000m title
- 13x World Champion (26 total world medals)
- 2012 Silver Laurel Leaf recipient (Germany's highest sporting honor)
German Athletes