Justyna Kowalczyk

Justyna Kowalczyk ( listen? / I ) ( born January 19, 1983 in Limanowa, Lesser Poland Voivodeship ) is a Polish cross-country skier.

Through their two Olympic victories in 2010 and 2014 and the three other Olympic medals Kowalczyk is one of the most successful skiers in Polish in sports history. She succeeded in 2006 as the first Polish cross-country skier of winning a medal Olympian Sichen. In the Nordic World Ski Championships 2009, the Polish woman won three medals, including two gold in the double tracking and the 30 -kilometer race. In addition, she won the overall World Cup of the season 2008/ 09, 2009/2010, 2010/2011 and 2012/2013, making it the first overall World Cup champion their country. For several years, you is one of the best athletes in the World Cup, has celebrated thirteen World Cup victories and many more podium results. For attention she attended also by a doping suspension in 2005, subsequently fourth place was still disallowed in a World Cup through her.

  • 2.1 World Cup wins 2.1.1 World Cup rankings

Career

Beginnings, in the World Cup and the first successes (2000-2003)

With ten years Kowalczyk started the cross-country, they played their first international competition seven years later at the Nordic Junior World Championship 2000 in Slovakia Štrbské Pleso. There, the then 17 - year-old Pole reached no convincing rankings, her best result was a 40th place in Freestyle Sprint. Also at the Junior World Championships a year later in their home country, in Karpacz, Szklarska Poręba, it did not come with a 30th place out, so it was but at least best of the four Polish participants. In March 2001, she started for the first time in FIS races, unterklassigen competitions, of which she won her first once, and her second finished in second place. In these two races the number of participants was limited to only eight rural women Kowalczyks that did not belong all to the international elite. Still, however, she managed according to good placements also in other FIS races outside Poland to jump in the Cross Country World Cup, where they first went in Cogne on 9 December 2001 to the start than 64th in the sprint prologue further rounds clearly missed.

Although Kowalczyk had retracted not a surprising result in the first World Cup race, it was set as the best Polish woman but for the Polish- Ukrainian relay at the World Cup in Davos. With over seven minutes behind but this mixed team missed the top places far and ultimately placed with over three minutes behind the second last season on the 17th and last place. Shortly thereafter, the Polish woman reached her first World Cup point, when she was 30 in the sprint of Asiago. At the last FIS races before the World Youth Championship 2002 in Schonach she succeeded once again finished second, before she particularly impressed at the Junior World Championships in the sprint, where they narrowly missed the top ten as the Eleventh. Also in the Continental convinced the Polish woman, so she was also nominated for the 2002/ 03 season in the World Cup. There she gathered in two sprints, one in December 2002, one in March 2003, a further eight points. The further winter was good for them; they triumphed in five FIS race and could also be the ninth in the sprint Winter Universiade 2003 in Tarvisio.

However, the greatest success of the season reached Kowalczyk at the Junior World Championship 2003 in Sweden Sollefteå. Here she became a fifth over five kilometers in a classic style and subsequently placed in the sprint in second behind the Germans Nicole Fessel, which she won the silver medal. Still in the qualifying, the prologue, she was only 14. Because of these good performances of the Polish Association nominated them for the world championship of seniors. There, she managed more than ten kilometers of the 48th rank in the sprint as they missed the top 31 almost 30

Establishment in the points and doping suspension (2003-2005)

In the winter of 2003/ 04 Kowalczyk started well with another FIS Race triumph. With two World Cup races in December 2003, she improved her best results, first on a 24 then on a 15th place they achieved in the sprint. In the following course of the season they still came up with a 12th place in a 10-kilometer race; total it took 88 World Cup points and was 46th in the overall World Cup. To this end, they won twice each with FIS and Continental Cup competitions. At major events of the winter they did not participate.

The 2004/05 season began for Kowalczyk in turn successfully, she took a number of points for the overall World Cup and won a FIS race. Also in the Winter Universiade in Innsbruck in January 2005, she participated successfully, winning more than 15 kilometers, which meant their first major international title. In good shape they went to at the 2005 World Ski Championships in fourth place and drove the bronze medal over 30 km classic just a few seconds over. Also in the other world cup competitions they placed well, but these results were all denied by the FIS, as was noted in the Polin in June 2005 that it had taken in January this year, the doping agent dexamethasone. As a result, canceled the Ski Federation all results Kowalczyks retroactively since end of January 2005, the World Cup results. To this end, he sentenced them to two years' doping ban, but this was shortened shortly thereafter because the agent was ingested either unintentionally or the performance is not increased. So she could go back to the international launch in December 2005.

Olympic medal and final breakthrough to the world class (2005 -)

The following on the doping suspension Season 2005/ 06 was Kowalczyks most successful up to that point. In the World Cup, she placed herself in sixth in the sprint of Nové Mesto first time in the top 10, then followed at the beginning of 2006, her first podium finish when she finished third over 10 kilometers Otepaeae. In this good form, she traveled to the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. There they placed already in the tracking in eighth, after which, however, two disappointments came. The 10 -kilometer race they could not finish in the sprint and she was disqualified as the 44th already in the qualifier. Only in the last competition, the 30-kilometer mass start, Kowalczyk showed and gave off a good race, she finished as third and bronze medalist. Only in the final sprint, she had to admit defeat, so they even the victory of Kateřina Neumannová missed by only two seconds. Nevertheless, they became the first Olympic medalist for Poland in cross-country skiing. In the overall World Cup, she placed with 392 points followed by 13

The Cross Country World Cup 2006/ 07 she began quite weak, though her after all, managed a fourth-place finish in a 10-kilometer race. Also in the first discharged Tour de Ski as she missed the Eleventh top 10, though just barely. Only after the Tour de Ski Kowalczyk came back into shape at the Universiade they triumphed even triple, in the sprint, in the double tracking as well as five kilometers. Shortly afterwards, she managed the first World Cup victory, when she won the 10 -kilometer race of Otepaeae. Despite further good results in the World Cup she made no top-five place at the Nordic World Ski Championships 2007 in Sapporo. The overall World Cup, she finished on a good eighth place, while in Sprint Cup points collected many both in and Distance.

Unlike in the previous year Kowalczyk started very well in the World Cup 2007/ 08, by a third party was again equal in their second race. After the Tour de Ski, which this time they finished in seventh, followed in Canmore the second World Cup success. Thanks to several podiums reached the Pole in the World Cup third place, just as in the distance World Cup, Sprint Cup, she was eighth. Also in the 2008/ 09 season she started successfully; in the first ten World Cup competitions they once came not among the top 10, even in the Tour de Ski 2008/2009, she placed to fourth place overall. At the Olympic test event in Whistler, to which, however, does not traveled all the top athletes, Kowalczyk celebrated her third World Cup triumph, now in pursuit. To kick off the Nordic World Ski Championships 2009 in Liberec, she won her first World Cup classic medal with the bronze medal over 15 kilometers. A few days later Kowalczyk won the double pursuit over 2 x 7.5 km and then reached her first international title before Kristin Størmer Steira by the Norwegian struck just the final sprint. At the last race of the World Cup more than 30 kilometers in the free technique, the Polish woman managed to once again settle through an attack one kilometer before conclusion of their persecutors and to celebrate their second world title. Towards the end of winter boosted Kowalczyk their services one more time and added their track record four World Cup victories and winning the World Cup Finals added. Thus they managed to overtake the last competitions also the Slovenian Petra Majdič in the World Cup, had worn the yellow jersey until the World Cup finals. Finally, she was able to celebrate the World Cup victory 22 March 2009, although previously had not even been a World Cup race in Poland, so the sport was quite unpopular.

In the Olympic season 2009/10 Kowalczyk succeeded with three stage successes first victory at the Tour de Ski, while (classic sprint ) won at the following Winter Olympics on the 30 km classic won as well as a silver and a bronze medal (double tracking). At the end of the season Kowalczyk successfully defended the World Cup and also finished in the distance and sprint the first places.

In the following season 2010/11 she defended her title at the Tour de Ski ahead of Norway's Therese Johaug, where she won four stages for itself. In the Nordic World Ski Championships 2011 in Oslo, she won over 10 km classic pursuit race and in each silver behind Marit Bjørgen.

List of sporting achievements

World Cup wins

World Cup rankings

Honors and Awards

Winter Olympic Games Nordic skiing at the 2006 Winter Olympics Cross-country skiing at the 2010 Winter Olympics Cross-country skiing at the 2014 Winter Olympics FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2009 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2011 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2013 2008–09 FIS Cross-Country World Cup 2009–10 FIS Cross-Country World Cup 2010–11 FIS Cross-Country World Cup 2012–13 FIS Cross-Country World Cup 2009–10 Tour de Ski 2010–11 Tour de Ski 2011–12 Tour de Ski 2012–13 Tour de Ski 2002–03 FIS Cross-Country World Cup FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2003 2003–04 FIS Cross-Country World Cup FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2005 2006–07 FIS Cross-Country World Cup 2006–07 Tour de Ski FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2007 2007–08 FIS Cross-Country World Cup 2007–08 Tour de Ski Canmore (Alberta) 2008–09 Tour de Ski Whistler (British Columbia) Valdidentro Lahti Falun Kuusamo Rybinsk Moscow Drammen Lillehammer 2011–12 FIS Cross-Country World Cup Polish Sportspersonality of the Year Galina Kulakova Raisa Smetanina Berit Aunli Lyubov Yegorova Manuela Di Centa Stefania Belmondo Gabriella Paruzzi Charlotte Kalla 2013–14 Tour de Ski List of Olympic medalists in cross-country skiing Lydia Wideman Toini Gustafsson List of FIS Nordic World Ski Championships medalists in men's cross-country skiing
458658
de