Felix Rinner

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

Felix Rinner

Personal information
Nationality	Austrian
Born	(1911-01-06)6 January 1911
Died	2 April 1976(1976-04-02) (aged 65)
Sport
Sport	Sprinting
Event	200 metres

Biography

Rinner finished third behind Godfrey Rampling in the 440 yards event at the 1931 AAA Championships.^[1][2][3]

Rinner competed in the men's 200 metres at the 1936 Summer Olympics.^[4] Rinner was a ten time national champion across four different sprint events in the 1930s.^[5]

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.^[6][7][8]

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.^[9][10] From 1945 to 1947 Rinner was interned by the Americans.^[9]