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Ekaterina Karsten

Close Finish



In 2000 Karsten made her third Olympic appearance in Sydney, Australia at the age of 28. The reigning World Champion was favored to win the single scull competition, but Bulgarian Rumyana Neykova did not make it easy for her to win. Neykova led the final race until the final 300 meters when Karsten made a strong dash for the finish. The two rowers were tied with only 150 meters left in the race and they seemed to finish at the same time. The race judges had to review tapes and photos of the finish to determine the winner. "Two women waged war for just under 7½ gut-wrenching minutes yesterday, but it took three times as long to separate the victor from the vanquished," wrote Michael Horan of the Sunday Mail on September 24, 2000. After twenty-three minutes of deliberation, the judges announced that Karsten had won by only one tenth of one second. With this victory Karsten won her second consecutive Olympic gold medal for Belarus.



Karsten continued to compete internationally after the 2000 Olympics. In 2001 she won the single sculls World Cup races in Seville, Vienna, and Munich. She finished third in the single sculls World Championships in 2001 and second in 2002, where she was defeated by Neykova, her rival from the Olympics. Karsten is expected to compete in her fourth Olympic Games in Athens, Greece in 2004.

Chronology

1972 Born on June 2 in Osetcheno, Belarus
1987 Begins training at the Minsk School of Rowing
1989 Wins Belarussian Junior Championships
1990 Wins Junior World Championships
1992 Wins bronze medal in Olympics as member of the Unified Team of Soviet States
1996 Wins gold medal in Olympics as member of Belarussian team
1997 Wins World Championship in single sculls
1998 Marries Wilfred Karsten
1998 Gives birth to Alexandra
1999 Wins World Championship in single sculls
2000 Wins gold medal in Olympics in single sculls
2002 Wins silver medal in World Championships in single sculls

Awards and Accomplishments

1989 Gold medal, Belarussian Junior Championship
1990 Gold medal, single sculls, All Soviet Union Championships
1990 Gold medal, single sculls, Junior World Championships
1991 Bronze medal, double sculls, World Championships
1992 Bronze medal, quad sculls, Olympic Games
1993 Finished seventh, double sculls, World Championships
1994 Finished fifth, double sculls, World Championships
1995 Finished seventh, single sculls, World Championships
1996 Gold medal, single sculls, Olympic Games
1997 Overall champion, single sculls, Rowing World Cup
1997 Gold medal, single sculls, World Championships
1999 Gold medal, single sculls, World Championships
1999 Gold medal, single sculls, Rowing World Cup, Lucerne, Switzerland
2000 Gold medal, single sculls, Olympic Games
2000 Gold medal, single sculls, Rowing World Cup, Munich, Germany
2000 Gold medal, single sculls, Rowing World Cup, Lucerne, Switzerland
2001 First place, single sprint, Head of the Charles Regatta
2001 Gold medal, single sculls, Rowing World Cup, Seville, Spain
2001 Gold medal, single sculls, Rowing World Cup, Vienna, Austria
2001 Gold medal, single sculls, Rowing World Cup, Munich, Germany
2001 Silver medal, double sculls, Rowing World Cup, Munich, Germany
2001 Bronze medal, single sculls, World Championships
2001 Bronze medal, double sculls, World Championships
2002 Gold medal, single sculls, Rowing World Cup
2002 Silver medal, single sculls, World Championships
2002 Bronze medal, quad sculls, World Championships

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