Britta Steffen
Steffen at the 121st German Championships 2009
Britta Steffen ( born November 16, 1983 in Schwedt / Oder) is a former German swimmer. She won 23 medals at the Summer Olympic Games and World and European championships, including two Olympic medals, two World Championship titles and nine European titles during her career. On September 27, 2013 her career end was announced.
Sporting Vita
Britta Steffen is over 50 and 100m freestyle double Olympic champion in 2008, double World Champion in 2009 and double European champion in 2006., It achieved several world records in relay events and holds the current long- course world records over 50 and 100 meters freestyle. She lives in Berlin and trained under Norbert Warnatzsch at SG Neukölln. In parallel, she studied Industrial Engineering for Environment and Sustainability at the University of Economics and Law Berlin and the Beuth University of Applied Sciences Berlin until its successful conclusion in 2012.
Career
Your swimming career began in the Britta Steffen SSV 90 PCK Schwedt. At twelve, she moved to Potsdam to the sports school. It was there promoted and shaped by coach Mathias Pönisch in their teenage years.
In the years 1998 and 1999 Steffen finished at Youth Championships on German and European level various medal courses in various disciplines. Alone at the European Junior Championships, she won eight victories.
At the German Championships in 2000 she finished as valedictorian is ranked No. 50 and 200 meter freestyle. She started at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney as a leading swimmer in the 4 × 200-meter freestyle relay, which later won the bronze medal. In addition, she won the 4 × 100 - meter freestyle team to fourth place.
After Olympic Steffen came to a dip in form. At the German Championships in 2001 and 2002, stagnated their performance at the European Swimming Championships in 2002 she was again only lead swimmer. After the European Championships, she moved to SG Neukölln in Berlin, where she returned to its old form. At the Olympic Games in Athens in 2004 Britta Steffen started on two routes, but without reaching the goals. Deeply disappointed, she gave in 2004 to the swimming and began her studies. In August 2005, she began to train again.
European Swimming Championships 2006
In the European Swimming Championships in Budapest in 2006 she was with Petra Dallmann, Daniela Goetz and Annika Lieb member of the 4 × 100-meter freestyle relay that swam to gold in 3:35,22 minutes, thereby setting a new world record. In this record she swam at position 3 of its 100 meters in a "flying " start to sensational 52.66 seconds, the fastest time, which was until then swum by a woman over this distance.
Two days after the season success they also triumphed in a world record time of 53.30 seconds in the 100 -meter freestyle final. Only 24 hours later, her third triumph with a gold and world record in the 4 × 200 - meter freestyle competition in 7:50,82 minutes, along with Petra Dallmann, Daniela Samulski and Annika Lieb.
On the last day of the competition she also won the 50m freestyle in 24.72 seconds and leveled it the German record. Only an hour later, Steffen missed her fifth gold as the final swimmer of the 4 × 100-meter medley relay in spite of a famous comeback very thin and came in second place.
With a total of four gold medals and one silver medal Britta Steffen was the most successful athlete of the European Swimming Championships in 2006. Successes in Budapest achieved Britta Steffen complete surprise after a nearly two-year break from competition. Much of the international experts were surprised at this performance explosion. However, a large number of doping tests in recent years revealed no evidence of manipulation.
World Swimming Championships in 2007
In the swimming world championships in 2007 in Melbourne Britta Steffen won the bronze medal over 100 m freestyle in 53.74 seconds and thus missed their ambitious goal gold. However, they could win the silver medal in the 4 × 200-meter freestyle relay. In addition, they launched the 50m freestyle, in the 4 × 100-meter medley relay and the 4 × 100 meter freestyle relay. However, in all three races she could not win a medal.
Olympic Games 2008
At the 2008 Olympics in Beijing she won in the new Olympic record time of 53.12 seconds the gold medal in the 100 meters freestyle. This was the first German swimming gold medal since the title of Dagmar Hase at the Games in Barcelona in 1992.
In addition, she won the gold medal in the 50 meters freestyle distance in time of 24.06 seconds by a margin of one hundredth of a second on Dara Torres. She put up both a new Olympic record and a new European record with her time swum. Both titles were also taken with a swimming suit, which was classified as "slow " in the professional world.
German Championships 2009
Steffen improved in June 2009 at the German Championships in Berlin previously held by Lisbeth Trickett world record for the 100 meters freestyle twice, most recently to 52.56 seconds.
2009 World Championships
Her first title at the World Championships in Rome, she swam again in world record time of 52.07 seconds in the 100 meters freestyle.
Already in qualifying 4 × 100 meter freestyle Steffen improved her own world record as part of the race season as the starting swimmer at 52.22 seconds. The German quartet finished with the cast ( Steffen, Samulski, Dallmann, writer) to second place ( 3:31,82 minutes) behind the world record ( 3:31,72 min) floating Dutch women. The German team also remained well below the previous world record ( 3:33,62 min). Your third medal winning Britta Steffen in the relay 4 × 100 m medley in which she placed as the final swimmer along with Daniela Samulski, Sarah Poewe and Annika Mehlhorn third place behind the seasons from China and Australia.
On the final day of the competitions Britta Steffen was finally successful on 50 -meter freestyle. She won in a new world record time of 23.73 seconds before Therese Alshammar, as well as the simultaneous Cate Campbell and Marleen Veldhuis.
2011 World Championships
During the World Swimming Championships 2011 in Shanghai Steffen said, defending champion in the 50 - and 100-meter freestyle distance, after a disappointing for them 16th in the heats over 100 - meter freestyle and a slow single time in the 100- m- freestyle relay all further starts from.
European Swimming Championships 2012
Steffen swam out at the European Swimming Championships in 2012 according to own data from the training for the 2012 Olympics. She won gold on the 50 - meter freestyle, the 4 × 100-meter freestyle relay and the 4 × 100-meter medley relay and silver on the 100 - meter freestyle.
Olympic Games 2012
Like all other German swimmer Beck - - At the Olympic Games in 2012 Steffen did not match previous successes and remained medaillenlos. In the seasons over 4x100m freestyle and 4x100m medley she parted with their team-mates as each of Ninth already in the flow. In the 100m freestyle, where she won gold in 2008 had, she was in the lead with 54.42 sec in 15th place, which was enough to feed the semi-finals. There they could indeed improve on 54.18 s, but this was only a 12th place, which they had retired. In 50m freestyle, where she swam as 2008 gold, they could also improve continuously, but missed a medal when she 's reached a 4th place with 24.46 in the final. This placement was the best among all German swimmers.
Records
- Chronology of world record over 50m Freestyle
- Chronology of European record about 50 m freestyle
- Chronology of world record over 100 m Freestyle
- Chronology of European record about 100 m freestyle
Awards
- 2006 and 2009: 2nd place in the election Athlete of the Year
- 2007: Order of Merit of the Federal State of Berlin
- 2008: Goldene Henne
- 2008: Sportswoman of the Year
- 2010: Sparkasse Price
Private life
Since March 2010, Steffen is in a relationship with the swimmer Paul Biedermann. Britta Steffen is a good friend of Franziska van Almsick.
Special
Britta Steffen is known that it has repeatedly given away medals, most recently the German announcer Kai Steinbrunn in Debrecen at the European Championships in 2012.