Disclaimer
Although all efforts have been taken to ensure that the posts in this blog are accurate, at times mistakes do happen and erroneous information gets posted. Readers are requested not to take the information posted in this blog at face value and verify other credible and reliable sources.
Ivar Ballangrud from Norway was one of the speed skating greats of his era. He was one of the best speed skaters for 15 years from 1924 to 1939. Born on 7 March 1904, he was a member of the "Handeland Trio". Ivar made his international debut when he was only 19 years old. He took part in the 1928 Olympics and won gold in the 5000m event. He also won a bronze medal in the 1500m in the same winter Olympics.
During the 1932 Lake Placid Winter Olympics, Ivar did not have luck on his side and only won a silver medal in the 10000m event. However, his luck was about to be changed as he won gold in the 500m, 5000m and 10000m speed skating events during the 1936 Winter Olympics. He also won a silver medal in the 1500m speed skating event in the same Winter Olympics. He is hailed a national hero in his country and is greatly admired for his feats in the world of speed skating. He died on 1 June 1969.
Hyun-Soo Ahn born on 1985 in Seoul, South Korea is a Short Track Speed Skater. He has revolutionized short track speed skating and has won four Olympic medals till date. He learnt skating when in elementary school.
It was only after he saw his heroes Jee-Hoon Chae and Dong-Sung Kim on television during the 1994 Olympic Winter Games in Lillehammer that he felt that he too can become a great short track speed skater. The first Olympics that he participated in was in the 2002 Winter Olympics at Salt Lake City. Unfortunately he did not win any medals during the 2002 Winter Olympic games.
However, fortunes changed for him during the 2006 Torino Olympics where he ended up winning individual gold medals in the 1000 meters and 1500 meters short track speed skating events. He also won gold in the 5000 meters relay and a bronze in the 500 meters event. He is also the first Korean to have won three medals in a single Winter Olympics.
Vijender Kumar born 29 October 2009 is a boxer from India who became the first Indian to win an Olympic medal. He won a bronze medal in the middle weight category during the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
It has not been an easy journey for Vijender who had to work overtime to pay for his coaching at the "Bhiwani Boxing Club". His dad a bus driver also had to work overtime in order to raise funds for Vijender's training. After he won the Olympic medal, his hometown of Kaluwas erupted in joy.
Currently, he models part-time and also works for the Haryana Police.
During the 1948 London Olympics, Bob Mathias from the United States became the Youngest Decathlete to win the Decathlon title. He was only 17 years old. Four years later he won gold in the 1952 Helsinki Olympics. He set a world record there and became the first man to retain the 10 sports crown.
He started practicing just three months before the 1948 Olympics and made it to the U.S. Olympic team. However, his naivety during the decathlon was pretty obvious as he was unaware of the rules of shot put. He almost lost out in the high jump event, but managed to recover. He went on to win gold inspite of all these initial hiccups.
He retired from athletic competition after the 1952 Olympics and ended up becoming the first director of the United States Olympic Training Center. He died in Fresno on September 2, 2006 due to cancer.
Edwin Corley Moses (born on August 31, 1995) from the united states was the most successful 400m hurdler. He won gold during the 1976 and 1984 Olympics. He could not compete in the 1980 Moscow Olympics as a result of the American boycott of the Moscow Olympics. He won bronze during the 1988 Seoul Olympics.
It has to be mentioned that he achieved all this by maintaining a strict vegetarian diet. He has also been a key person to bring reforms in areas of Olympic eligibility and also has been an instrumental person in ushering in a number of anti-drug policies.
Matina Beck born September 21, 1979 won three silver medals in the Turin 2006 Winter Olympics. She won these medals in the 15 km individual, 10 km pursuit and 4×6 km relay categories.
Although age is not on her side, she is a strong contender to win gold in these three categories in the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics. She is only 158cms tall, but is renowned for her shooting ability. She lives in Mittenwald in Bavaria.
It looks like everything that Rebecca Adlington touches turn gold. She is just 20 years old and has won two Olympic gold medals in her very first Olympics participation. She won gold in the 400m and 800m freestyle category during the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics.
She also managed to break the 19 year old record set by Janet Evans in the 800m freestyle event. She is referred to as Great Britain's most successful Olympic swimmer in 100 years and is also the first British swimmer to win two Olympic gold medals for swimming. For a 20 year old this is quite an achievement. Other swimmers better watch out for her as she has many more years of swimming glory left in her.
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