Butterfly swimmer Michael Kraus won the bronze medal with the West German medley relay at the 1976 Montréal Olympics. He also competed in the individual 100 and 200 metres butterfly events, finishing fifth in the 200 final. With the medley relay squads, he won two silver medals, at the 1975 Cali and 1978 West Berlin World Championships. In 1977, he won the 200 metres individual butterfly individual gold at the European Championships, and added another gold with the medley relay.
Kraus later married his Dutch colleague Annelies Maas and graduated as a physician. He was later a long-time vice-president of the German Triathlon Union. He also became president of his home club SV Gladbeck 13.
