Elisabeta Lipa
Encyclopedia
Elisabeta Lipă (born October 26, 1964 in Siret
Siret
Siret is a town in Romania, Suceava County, one of the oldest towns in, and a former capital of, the former principality of Moldavia. It is located 2 km from the border with Ukraine, being one of the main border passing points in the North of the country, having both a road border post and a...
, Suceava
Suceava
Suceava is the Suceava County seat in Bukovina, Moldavia region, in north-eastern Romania. The city was the capital of the Principality of Moldavia from 1388 to 1565.-History:...
) is a retired rower from Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
, who was born under the name of Elisabeta Oleniuc. She is the most decorated rower in the history of the Olympics
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
, winning five golds, two silvers and one bronze. She holds the record amongst rowers for the most years between gold medals, at 20 years.
Lipă debuted at the age of 19 at the 1984 Summer Olympics
1984 Summer Olympics
The 1984 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Los Angeles, California, United States in 1984...
in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, where she won her first gold medal in the Double Scull event. She won her most recent gold medal in the eight-oared boat at the Athens Summer Olympics in 2004. She is the only person to win a gold medal in the two premiere rowing events: the single scull and the eight oared boat. She is also one of very few women to win a gold medal in both a sculling (two oars per person) and a sweep (one oar per person) event. (Canada's Kathleen Heddle
Kathleen Heddle
Kathleen Joan Heddle, is a Canadian rower. Heddle and her long-time rowing partner Marnie McBean were the first Canadians to win three Olympic Gold medals....
and Marnie McBean
Marnie McBean
Marnie Elizabeth McBean is a Canadian rower.McBean competed at the 1992 Summer Olympics in the coxless pairs and eights events, winning gold medals in both. At the 1996 Summer Olympics she competed in the double and quadruple sculls, winning gold in the double and bronze in the quadruple...
accomplished the same, sculling and sweep gold medals, in 1992 and 1996.)
In 2004, she became the first rower to compete at six Olympics. This was equalled in 2008 by Canadian Lesley Thompson
Lesley Thompson
Lesley Allison Thompson-Willie is a Canadian rowing coxswain and Olympic champion. She has competed at six different Olympics, from 1984 to 2008, winning medals in four of them including gold in coxed eight at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona...
(cox), Estonian Jüri Jaanson
Jüri Jaanson
Jüri Jaanson is the most successful Estonian rower of all time and the winner of five medals at Rowing World Championships. He became World Champion in Tasmania 1990 in the single sculls event. 14 years later, at age 38 he won an Olympic silver medal in the single sculls event at the 2004 Summer...
, and Australian James Tomkins.
She was awarded the 2008 Thomas Keller Medal
Thomas Keller Medal
The Thomas Keller Medal is given by the International Rowing Federation for an outstanding international career in the sport of rowing. It is the highest honor in rowing and is awarded to any athlete within five years of his/her retirement from the sport...
at the Rowing World Cup in Lucerne.
Olympic
- 1984 Summer Olympics1984 Summer OlympicsThe 1984 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Los Angeles, California, United States in 1984...
, Gold Medal, Double Scull (2x) - 1988 Summer Olympics1988 Summer OlympicsThe 1988 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad, were an all international multi-sport events celebrated from September 17 to October 2, 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. They were the second summer Olympic Games to be held in Asia and the first since the 1964 Summer Olympics...
, Silver Medal, Double Scull (2x) - 1988 Summer Olympics1988 Summer OlympicsThe 1988 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad, were an all international multi-sport events celebrated from September 17 to October 2, 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. They were the second summer Olympic Games to be held in Asia and the first since the 1964 Summer Olympics...
, Bronze Medal, Quadruple Scull (4x) - 1992 Summer Olympics1992 Summer OlympicsThe 1992 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event celebrated in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, in 1992. The International Olympic Committee voted in 1986 to separate the Summer and Winter Games, which had been held in the same...
, Silver Medal, Double Scull(2x) - 1992 Summer Olympics1992 Summer OlympicsThe 1992 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event celebrated in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, in 1992. The International Olympic Committee voted in 1986 to separate the Summer and Winter Games, which had been held in the same...
, Gold Medal, Single Scull (1x) - 1996 Summer Olympics1996 Summer OlympicsThe 1996 Summer Olympics of Atlanta, officially known as the Games of the XXVI Olympiad and unofficially known as the Centennial Olympics, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1996 in Atlanta, Georgia, United States....
, Gold Medal, Eight (8+) - 2000 Summer Olympics2000 Summer OlympicsThe Sydney 2000 Summer Olympic Games or the Millennium Games/Games of the New Millennium, officially known as the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated between 15 September and 1 October 2000 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
, Gold Medal, Eight (8+) - 2004 Summer Olympics2004 Summer OlympicsThe 2004 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad, was a premier international multi-sport event held in Athens, Greece from August 13 to August 29, 2004 with the motto Welcome Home. 10,625 athletes competed, some 600 more than expected, accompanied by 5,501 team...
, Gold Medal, Eight (8+)
Rowing World Championships
- 1982, 3rd, Quadruple Scull
- 1983, 3rd, Double Scull
- 1985, 2nd, Double Scull
- 1986, 2nd, Double Scull
- 1987, 2nd, Double Scull
- 1989, 2nd, Double Scull
- 1989, 1st, Single Scull
- 1990, 6th, Single Scull
- 1991, 2nd, Single Scull
- 1991, 2nd, Double Scull
- 1993, 7th, Single Scull
- 1993, 6th, Double Scull
- 1994, 3rd, Eight
- 1994, 2nd, Double Scull
- 1999, 9th, Quad
- 2003, 2nd, Eight