By Nick Butler

DBS youth secretary Detlev Lutkehoff has died after a 34 year career with the National Paralympic Committee ©DBSDetlev Lutkehoff, youth secretary of the National Paralympic Committee of Germany, has died after a 34 year career with the organisation, it has been announced.

Lutkehoff, who partially retired in 2013, was among the first employees of DBS and played an important role in the development of the NPC, especially the German Disability Sport Youth. 

A worker valued for his "friendly and warmhearted character, his energy and his professional knowledge", the official was co-founder of the German Youth State Cup.

Impressively, he attended the Paralympic Youth Camps in Barcelona 1992, Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000, Athens 2004, Beijing 2008, Vancouver 2010 and London 2012, while other projects he was involved in include a "Youth trains for Paralympics" scheme.

Detlev Lutkehoff contributed heavily to German success at recent Paralympic Games ©Getty ImagesDetlev Lutkehoff contributed heavily to German success at recent Paralympic Games ©Getty Images


Under his charge, Germany has enjoyed huge success at both the Summer and Winter Games, with the country finishing eighth on the medals table with 18 gold medals at London 2012, before finishing a distant second to Russia, with nine golds, at Sochi 2014. 

In October 2013 Lutkehoff received the 'Diskus', an award presented by the German Sport Youth organisation for his longstanding engagement.

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