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Defending Olympic and World Champion in C-1 Sebastian Brendel grew up in Schwedt, Germany, where he first learned canoeing at the age of eight. He moved to Potsdam so that he could attend school for aspiring athletes, and apart from canoeing, he also dabbled in other sports. Brendel played soccer, ran track, and practiced karate, but he eventually ditched them all when he gravitated to canoe sprinting as a sport. He made his international debut in 2007, which is the same time that American swimmer Michael Phelps was becoming an international star. Brendel said Phelps was one of his most-admired heroes. Brendel eventually made a big splash on the canoe sprinting scene. At the 2012 London Games, he won gold in the C-1 1,000 meters. At the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games, he won gold in both the C-1 1,000 meters and C-2 1,000 meters with teammate Jan Vandrey.

Brendel broke theworld record in the C-1 1,000meters at the 2014 International Canoe Federation Sprint World Championships inMoscow, Russia. He has six World Cup titles and has been named regional and national athlete of the yearmultiple times in Germany.

The Summer Olympics: Athletes to Watch

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