Karin Enke facts for kids
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Enke in 1983
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 20 June 1961 Dresden, East Germany |
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| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 72 kg (159 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Sport | Speed skating | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | SC Einheit Dresden | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Karin Voss, born Karin Enke on June 20, 1961, is a famous former speed skater. She was one of the best skaters in the 1980s. Karin won three gold medals at the Olympic Games. She earned gold in the 500 meters in 1980, and both the 1000 meters and 1500 meters in 1984. In total, she won eight Olympic medals while representing East Germany.
Contents
Karin Enke's Early Life and Career
Karin Enke began her sports journey as a figure skater. She trained at the SC Einheit Dresden club in East Germany. In 1977, she competed at the European Figure Skating Championships, where she finished in ninth place.
Later, Karin decided to switch from figure skating to speed skating. This change proved to be a great decision for her career.
Becoming a Speed Skating Champion
Karin Enke quickly became a top speed skater. She was very strong in all distances, from short sprints to longer races. In 1983, she won German championships in all five speed skating distances. She was also the reigning World Allround Champion and World Sprint Champion.
At the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo, Karin was expected to win many medals. She won two gold medals (in the 1000m and 1500m) and two silver medals (in the 500m and 3000m). During her career, she won 21 individual races in the Speed Skating World Cup. Karin retired from speed skating after the 1987–88 season.
Karin Enke's Changing Names
Karin Enke was born with the name Karin Enke. In 1981, she got married and competed as Karin Busch during the 1981–82 winter season. This marriage did not last long. For the 1982–83 and 1983–84 seasons, she competed again as Karin Enke.
In 1984, she married her long-time coach, Rudolf Kania. After this marriage, she competed as Karin Kania for the rest of her speed skating career. After she stopped competing, she divorced and married again. She then became known as Karin Enke-Richter.
Karin Enke's Medals
Here is a list of the medals Karin Enke won at major championships:
| Championships | Gold medal | Silver medal | Bronze medal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter Olympics | 1980 (500 m) 1984 (1000 m) 1984 (1500 m) |
1984 (500 m) 1984 (3000 m) 1988 (1000 m) 1988 (1500 m) |
1988 (500 m) |
| World Allround | 1982 1984 1986 1987 1988 |
1981 1983 |
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| World Sprint | 1980 1981 1983 1984 1986 1987 |
1982 1988 |
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| World Cup | 1986 (1000 m) | 1986 (500 m) 1986 (1500 m) 1988 (1000 m) |
1986 (3000/5000 m) 1988 (500 m) 1988 (1500 m) 1988 (3000/5000 m) |
| European Allround | 1981 1982 1983 |
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| German Allround | 1982 1983 |
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| German Sprint | 1984 1986 |
1983 | |
| German Single Distance | 1980 (1000 m) 1983 (500 m) 1983 (1000 m) 1983 (1500 m) 1983 (3000 m) 1983 (5000 m) 1984 (500 m) 1984 (1000 m) 1984 (1500 m) 1986 (1000 m) 1987 (500 m) 1988 (1000 m) 1988 (1500 m) |
1980 (1500 m) 1986 (500 m) 1986 (1500 m) 1986 (3000 m) 1988 (500 m) |
1980 (500 m) |
Karin Enke's World Records
During her career, Karin Enke set 10 world records. These are the fastest times ever recorded for certain distances at that time.
| Distance | Result | Date | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mini combination | 168.271 | 14 February 1982 | Inzell |
| 1500 m | 2:03.42 | 9 February 1984 | Sarajevo |
| 1000 m | 1:18.84 | 22 February 1986 | Karuizawa |
| Sprint combination | 160.060 | 23 February 1986 | Karuizawa |
| 1500 m | 2:02.23 | 6 March 1986 | Inzell |
| 3000 m | 4:18.02 | 21 March 1986 | Medeo |
| 500 m | 39.52 | 21 March 1986 | Medeo |
| 1500 m | 1:59.30 | 22 March 1986 | Medeo |
| Mini combination | 168.387 | 22 March 1986 | Inzell |
| 1000 m | 1:18.11 | 5 December 1987 | Calgary |
Karin Enke's Personal Best Times
These are Karin Enke's fastest personal times for each distance. The last column shows what the official world record was on the day she set her personal best.
| Distance | Result | Date | Location | WR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 500 m | 39.24 | 22 February 1988 | Calgary | 39.39 |
| 1000 m | 1:17.70 | 26 February 1988 | Calgary | 1:18.11 |
| 1500 m | 1:59.30 | 22 March 1986 | Medeo | 2:02.23 |
| 3000 m | 4:17.76 | 5 December 1987 | Calgary | 4:16.85 |
| 5000 m | 7:39.82 | 22 March 1986 | Medeo | 7:31.45 |
| Small combination | 168.272 | 22 March 1986 | Medeo | 171.760 |
| Mini combination | 168.271 | 14 February 1982 | Inzell | 168.387 |
| Sprint combination | 160.060 | 23 February 1986 | Karuizawa | 161.120 |
It's interesting to note that even though Karin Enke skated very fast, her personal bests for the 500m and 1000m were not world records. This is because other skaters, like Bonnie Blair and Christa Rothenburger, skated even faster times at the same 1988 Winter Olympics.
See also
In Spanish: Karin Kania para niños
