Karen Pickering
Encyclopedia
Karen Pickering is a former freestyle
swimmer from Great Britain
, who made her international senior debut in 1986. She was first selected to represent her country at the European Junior Championships. Pickering competed in four consecutive Summer Olympics, starting in 1992
.
She won her first medal in 1993, at the inaugural 1993 FINA Short Course World Championships
in Palma de Mallorca
, where she won the gold medal in the 200 m freestyle. With that performance Pickering became Britain's first Swimming
world champion.
She was a member of the British swimming squad from 1986 to 2005 and has a collection that includes 8 World Championship medals (4 gold), 14 European Championship medals, 38 National Championship titles, and a Commonwealth Games medal haul of 13 including 4 gold. The 2002 Commonwealth Games
saw Karen win three medals, two gold and one silver, in front of her home crowd, a career highlight which was crowned with the honour of carrying the English flag at the closing ceremony.
For her services to swimming Karen was awarded an MBE in the 1994 New Years Honours List.
Pickering is now the Sports Ambassador for Ipswich
in Suffolk
and chairs the British Athletes Commission.
Freestyle swimming
Freestyle is an unregulated swimming style used in swimming competitions according to the rules of FINA. The front crawl stroke is almost universally used during a freestyle race, as this style is generally the fastest...
swimmer from Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
, who made her international senior debut in 1986. She was first selected to represent her country at the European Junior Championships. Pickering competed in four consecutive Summer Olympics, starting in 1992
Swimming at the 1992 Summer Olympics
At the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain, 31 swimming events were contested. There was a total of 641 participants from 92 countries competing.-Medal table:-Men's events:* Swimmers who participated in the heats only and received medals....
.
She won her first medal in 1993, at the inaugural 1993 FINA Short Course World Championships
1993 FINA Short Course World Championships
The 1st FINA Short Course World Championships were held in Palma de Mallorca, Spain from December 2 until December 5, 1993. PR China won the most gold medals, although all of their ten came in the women's events, with Le Jingyi winning two individual and three relay events to travel home with five...
in Palma de Mallorca
Palma de Mallorca
Palma is the major city and port on the island of Majorca and capital city of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands in Spain. The names Ciutat de Mallorca and Ciutat were used before the War of the Spanish Succession and are still used by people in Majorca. However, the official name...
, where she won the gold medal in the 200 m freestyle. With that performance Pickering became Britain's first Swimming
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
world champion.
She was a member of the British swimming squad from 1986 to 2005 and has a collection that includes 8 World Championship medals (4 gold), 14 European Championship medals, 38 National Championship titles, and a Commonwealth Games medal haul of 13 including 4 gold. The 2002 Commonwealth Games
2002 Commonwealth Games
The 2002 Commonwealth Games were held in Manchester, England from 25 July to 4 August 2002. The XVII Commonwealth Games was the largest multi-sport event ever to be held in the UK, eclipsing London's 1948 Summer Olympics in numbers of teams and athletes participating.After the 1996 Manchester...
saw Karen win three medals, two gold and one silver, in front of her home crowd, a career highlight which was crowned with the honour of carrying the English flag at the closing ceremony.
For her services to swimming Karen was awarded an MBE in the 1994 New Years Honours List.
Pickering is now the Sports Ambassador for Ipswich
Ipswich
Ipswich is a large town and a non-metropolitan district. It is the county town of Suffolk, England. Ipswich is located on the estuary of the River Orwell...
in Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
and chairs the British Athletes Commission.