- Friedrich Traun
Friedrich Adolph Traun (March 29, 1876 in Wandsbeck – July 11, 1908 in
Hamburg ) was a German athlete andtennis player.He competed at the
1896 Summer Olympics inAthens — the first modern Olympic games. Traun placed third in his preliminary heat of the 100 metres and did not advance to the final.In the singles tennis tournament, Traun was defeated in the first round by
John Pius Boland of Great Britain and Ireland, the eventualgold medal list. This put Traun in a six-way tie for eighth place in the field of thirteen men. For the doubles tournament, Traun and Boland partnered. They defeated the Greek brothers Aristidis andKonstantinos Akratopoulos in the first round and had a bye for the semifinals. In the final, the pair defeatedDionysios Kasdaglis ofEgypt andDemetrios Petrokokkinos of Greece to give Traun his own gold medal.He grew up in a wealthy family, his father was the owner of a business for sale.
After his Olympic victory he emigrated to the United States for some years. He returned to Germany and was found dead in a hotel room in
Hamburg . It was believed that he had committed suicide due to being a bigamist.
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