Tanja Szewczenko facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Tanja Szewczenko |
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Szewczenko in 2007
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country represented | Germany | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 26 July 1977 Düsseldorf, West Germany |
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| Height | 1.62 m (5 ft 4 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Retired | 2000 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Tanja Szewczenko, born on July 26, 1977, is a former German figure skater. She won many important medals during her career. These include a bronze medal at the World Championships in 1994. She also earned a silver medal at the Champions Series Final in 1997. Tanja won a bronze medal at the European Championships in 1998. She also took home a bronze medal at the World Junior Championships in 1993.
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About Tanja
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Tanja Szewczenko was born in Düsseldorf, West Germany. Her mother, Vera Küke, was an ethnic German who moved from the Soviet Union. Tanja's father was Ukrainian. He left the family when she was only two years old.
Tanja Szewczenko is married to Norman Jeschke. They have three children. Their daughter was born in February 2011. They also have twin sons who were born in April 2021.
Skating Career
Tanja Szewczenko started her competitive figure skating journey early. She quickly showed great talent on the ice.
Early Achievements
In 1993, Tanja won a bronze medal at the World Junior Championships. This was a big step for her. It showed she was one of the best young skaters in the world.
Later in 1993, when she was just 16, Tanja won her first big international competition. This was the Nations Cup in Germany. She even beat the current world champion, Oksana Baiul. A few weeks later, she won her first national title in Germany. She defeated former Olympic champion Katarina Witt.
Olympic and World Medals
Tanja competed at the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway. During a practice session, she had a small accident. She collided with Oksana Baiul and got a bruise on her hip. Despite this, she finished 6th at the Olympics.
After the Olympics, Tanja continued to shine. She won a bronze medal at the 1994 World Championships. This was a major achievement for her.
Comeback and Challenges
After placing 6th at the 1996 World Championships, Tanja faced a tough time. She got sick with two different viral infections. These made her very tired, and she would sleep for 18 hours a day. This kept her from skating for about 18 months.
Tanja made a strong comeback in late 1997. She won the 1997 Sparkassen Cup on Ice in Germany. She also won the 1997 NHK Trophy in Japan. These wins helped her qualify for the 1997–98 Champions Series Final in Munich, Germany. There, she won a silver medal, finishing second to American skater Tara Lipinski.
In December 1997, Tanja had her tonsils removed. This was another challenge she overcame.
Final Competitions
Tanja won a bronze medal at the 1998 European Championships in Milan, Italy. However, she got a severe flu at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan. Because of this, she had to withdraw from the event. A month later, she finished 9th at the 1998 World Championships in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Tanja Szewczenko decided to stop competitive figure skating in 2000. She wanted to focus on modeling and acting instead. She is the last German female single skater to win a medal at an ISU Championship.
After Skating
After retiring from skating, Tanja Szewczenko started a new career in acting.
Acting Roles
Starting in 2002, she played a character named Katinka "Kati" Ritter. This was on the German soap opera Unter uns. Her last episode on that show was in December 2005.
From September 2006 to 2009, Tanja appeared in another German soap opera. This show was called Alles was zählt on RTL Television. She played Diana Sommer, a character who worked as an inline courier. Diana then trained to become a figure skater. Norman Jeschke played her pair skating partner in the show.
In January 2009, Tanja left Alles was zählt. She returned to show skating, joining the Holiday on Ice show with Norman Jeschke.
