Celebrating the Legacy of Heinz Kluetmeier: An 82-Year Journey in Photography and Aquatic Sports

Passages: Heinz Kluetmeier, Olympic Photographer and International Swimming Hall of Famer, 82

Heinz Kluetmeier, who captured images at 11 Summer Olympics and became the first photographer to be inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 2017, passed away on Tuesday. He was aged 82.

Kluetmeier documented 11 Summer Olympics from 1972 to 2012, in addition to the Winter Games, covering almost all but two Olympics from 1972 to 2016. He initially worked for the Associated Press during his teenage years before embarking on a long and celebrated career at Sports Illustrated, allowing him to capture some of the most significant moments in swimming history.

Kluetmeier succumbed to complications from Parkinson’s disease and a stroke. Former colleagues at Sports Illustrated composed tributes to him on Tuesday.

“Heinz captured images that no one else even thought to take—much less were capable of executing,” Jon Wertheim expressed in a heartfelt tribute. “He would discover an angle that no one had imagined. He would latch onto a detail that no one else would observe. Writers enjoyed collaborating with him, not just for his friendliness and skill. But also because Heinz would build a connection with the athlete and reveal a detail that would find a place in the written piece.”

His initial SI cover out of more than 100 featured Mark Spitz, connecting back to Kluetmeier’s own swimming background in high school. Kluetmeier’s first Olympic experience was the 1972 Summer Games, which was highlighted by Spitz’s seven gold medals in the water. His image of the U.S. men’s hockey team celebrating the Miracle on Ice during the 1980 Winter Olympics stands out as another of his most recognized SI cover images.

Kluetmeier was a trailblazer in using split-shot lenses and strobe lighting that captured swimmers both above and beneath the surface. He initiated this technique at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, and the most renowned image of this kind was Michael Phelps’ finish in the men’s 100 butterfly at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, where he narrowly surpassed Milorad Cavic by .01 seconds, part of his collection of eight gold medals.

Kluetmeier was born in Germany and brought up in Milwaukee. He earned a degree in engineering from Dartmouth College and spent two years working as an engineer before dedicating himself to photography full-time. Although he primarily worked for Sports Illustrated, his work was also featured in Time and Life magazines. In 1988, he assisted USA Swimming in fundraising through a coffee table book, Swimming: A Collection of Photographs by Heinz Kluetmeier, Commemorating One Hundred Years of Amateur Swimming in America.

“Heinz Kluetmeier was among the greatest photographers of our era,” former SI colleague Robert Beck shared on social media. “He was technically light years ahead of his contemporaries, but he also recognized that it was the emotions of the subjects he captured that truly distinguished his photography. If you have ever set up a remote camera, you owe Heinz. If you’ve ever positioned a camera in a pool at the Olympics (or elsewhere), you owe Heinz. Seeking different perspectives, you owe Heinz. I could continue indefinitely. He wanted to inspire superb images from you, but he also valued a strong work ethic.”