Richard Rau

Richard Rau (26 August 1889 – 6 November 1945) was a German SS officer and track and field athlete who competed in the 1912 Summer Olympics. He was eliminated in the semi-finals of the 100 m and finished fourth in the 200 m competition. He was also a member of the German relay team which was disqualified in the final of the 4 × 100 m relay after a fault with its second baton passing.

Rau started competing in flat sprint and hurdles in 1908, winning several national championships and setting 20 national records over his career, often under pseudonym Richard Einsporn. After retirement he ran a sports shop, and in 1933 joined the Nazi Party, reaching the rank of SS-Sturmbannführer in 1938. During World War II, Wau served in the Waffen-SS. In 1945, he was captured by the American forces and handed over to the Soviet Union. He was shot during a failed escape attempt, and moved to a prisoners camp in Vyasma, where he died in a few months.