Ralf Braun is a retired backstroke

Backstroke

The backstroke, also sometimes called the back crawl, is one of the four swimming styles regulated by FINA, and the only regulated style swum on the back. This has the advantage of easy breathing, but the disadvantage of swimmers not being able to see where they are going. It is also the only...

 swimmer from Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

, who competed for his native country at two consecutive Summer Olympics, starting in 1996 (Atlanta, Georgia

Atlanta, Georgia

Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...

).

A member of Wasserfreunde Spandau 04

Wasserfreunde Spandau 04

The Wasserfreunde Spandau 04 is a swimming club in Spandau, Berlin, Germany.The club is known for the water polo team, which has won a record number of German championships. The club has over 2,500 members....

 he is best known for winning the gold medal at the 1999 European Swimming Championships in the men's 200 m backstroke event. He also claimed the silver medal in the 4×100 m medley relay, two years earlier, alongside Jens Kruppa

Jens Kruppa

Jens Kruppa is an international breaststroke swimmer from Germany, who won the silver medal in the 4×100 metres medley relay at the 2004 Summer Olympics.-References:*...

, Thomas Rupprath

Thomas Rupprath

Thomas Rupprath is an Olympic swimmer from Germany, who is nicknamed "The New Albatross". A specialist in the backstroke and butterfly, especially in short course, he held the world record for the 50 m backstroke with a time of 23.27 seconds set on 31 November 2002. This was broken by Robert...

 and Christian Tröger

Christian Tröger

Christian-Alexander Tröger is a former swimmer from Germany, who won a total number of three bronze medals as a relay member at the Summer Olympics. He first did so in 1992 alongside Mark Pinger, Dirk Richter, and Steffen Zesner.- References :* *...

.