Felix Rinner (6 January 1911 – 2 April 1976) was an Austrian sprinter and an officer of the Austrian SS.

Felix Rinner
Personal information
NationalityAustrian
Born(1911-01-06)6 January 1911
Died2 April 1976(1976-04-02) (aged 65)
Sport
SportSprinting
Event200 metres

He competed in the men's 200 metres at the 1936 Summer Olympics.[1] Rinner was a ten time national champion across four different sprint events in the 1930s.[2]

When Austria was annexed by Germany, on March 11, 1938, he led a command of 40 armed SS men who forced their way in and occupied the Austrian Federal Chancellery.[3][4][5]

In 1941 Rinner was a member of the Austrian SS (Obersturmbannführer) to the SS Panzergrenadier Division “Viking”, was Adjutant to SS leader Ernst Kaltenbrunner (1903-1946, executed by hanging in Berlin for being a major perpetrator of the Holocaust), the commander of the entire Austrian SS, and was involved in the organization of the Gestapo in Austria.[6][7] From 1945 to 1947 Rinner was interned by the Americans.[6]

References

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  1. ^ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Felix Rinner Olympic Results". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  2. ^ "Felix Rinner". Olympedia. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
  3. ^ "Trial of the Major War Criminals before the International Military Tribunal," Volume XXXIV. Nuremberg, 1949, pp. 1–3.
  4. ^ Nuremberg Court Archive
  5. ^ Anschluss: The Week Hitler Seized Vienna. St. Martin's Press. 1971.
  6. ^ a b Athletes. Felix Rinner
  7. ^ Nazi Conspiracy and Aggression. U.S. Government Printing Office. 1947. p. 693.
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