Olympic canoeist Ronald Rauhe named Germany's sports minister in Merz cabinet reshuffle

Appointment to the Chancellery

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz appointed two-time Olympic canoeing champion Ronald Rauhe as the new Minister of State for Sports and Volunteering in the Federal Chancellery. Merz announced the decision on 3 September 2026 through a video published on Instagram, which showed Rauhe on the water in a canoe before changing into a formal suit to enter the Chancellery. The 44-year-old athlete takes charge of a portfolio established in 2025 to manage federal sports funding, international sports policy, and the preparation of large-scale athletic events. Merz stated that selecting an elite athlete demonstrates that the federal government treats sports as a critical field of responsibility.

Minister of State, welcome. I am very pleased, welcome to the team.

Support for volunteers and institutional reform

Rauhe, a Potsdam native who specialized in sprint distances of 200 and 500 meters, brings more than two decades of top-tier sports experience to the government. He won Olympic gold in Athens in 2004 in the double kayak over 500 meters, secured a second gold in Tokyo in 2021 in the four-man kayak, and earned 16 world championship titles before retiring from competition. A former sports soldier with a degree in sports marketing, he also worked as a canoeing expert for broadcaster ZDF and served on the European Olympic Committees athletes' commission. In January 2026, Rauhe received the Silver Laurel Leaf from his predecessor Christiane Schenderlein. Speaking after his appointment, Rauhe stated that the nomination touched him deeply and pledged to advocate for unpaid workers across German sports clubs.

They deserve fewer hurdles, more support, and above all our full appreciation.

The German Olympic bid timeline

Beyond volunteer initiatives, Rauhe must coordinate federal efforts to implement reforms across German elite athletics. His primary administrative task involves advancing the establishment of the planned national elite sports agency (Spitzensport-Agentur), which will be based in Leipzig. The Chancellery must also steer preparations for a potential German bid for the Olympic and Paralympic Games. The German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) has already submitted formal letters of interest to the International Olympic Committee for the Summer Games in 2036, 2040, or 2044. On 26 September 2026, the DOSB will hold an extraordinary general meeting in Baden-Baden to choose a candidate city among Berlin, Munich, and the Rhine-Ruhr region centered on Cologne.

Resolution of the federal reshuffle

The appointment of Rauhe resolves a federal personnel reshuffle that began in late July 2026. The sports post became vacant when Christiane Schenderlein of the CDU transferred to the Federal Ministry of Health as a Parliamentary State Secretary after 14 months in office. That reassignment was part of a broader rearrangement prompted by Jens Spahn stepping down as CDU/CSU parliamentary group leader following a controversy concerning surrogacy. Merz decided against naming another eastern German CDU politician to replace Schenderlein, ending weeks of regional debate within the party. Meanwhile, Spahn has returned to parliamentary duties on the Bundestag Budget Committee, where a CDU/CSU parliamentary group spokeswoman confirmed he will act as rapporteur for the Foreign Ministry budget.