Der Wettkampf meines Lebens - Die Geschichte von Axel Mitbauer

2025· 78 min★ 8.7·

On the night of August 17, 1969, the former GDR professional swimmer Axel Mitbauer swam from Boltenhagen (former GDR) to the Bay of Lübeck (former FRG). He covered a distance of around 25 km through the Baltic Sea. Before his spectacular escape from the GDR regime, he was imprisoned and interrogated by the Stasi (former secret police of the GDR) for several weeks as a result of various circumstances. As a grim consequence of his arrest, Axel Mitbauer was banned from sport and swimming in the GDR for life - the death blow to his sporting career in his former homeland and at the same time the impetus for one of the most unique escape attempts in the history of divided Germany. This film tells his story.