Barbara Bieganowska-Zając ( Niewiedział born 1 September 1981) is a

Paralympian The Paralympic Games or Paralympics, also known as the ''Games of the Paralympiad'', is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of physical disabilities, including impaired muscle power and impaire ...

athlete An athlete (also sportsman or sportswoman) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed, or endurance. Athletes may be professionals or amateurs. Most professional athletes have particularly well-devel ...

from Poland competing mainly in category T20 sprint and middle-distance events. She is a two time Paralympic gold medalist in the

800m The 800 metres, or meters ( US spelling), is a common track running event. It is the shortest commonly run middle-distance running event. The 800 metres is run over two laps of an outdoor (400-metre) track and has been an Olympic event since the ...

(2000) and

1,500 metres The 1500 metres or 1,500-metre run (typically pronounced 'fifteen-hundred metres') is the foremost middle distance track event in athletics (sport), athletics. The distance has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896 and the World Champi ...

(2012) races and has won four World Athletic titles.

Personal history

Niewiedział was born Barbara Bieganowska in Nysa, Poland in 1981. She has two daughters.

Athletics career

Niewiedział first came to note as an athlete when in 1999 she set a world record mark of 57.48 in the

400 metres The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics (sport), athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor runn ...

at a meet in Seville. She followed this with a gold medal in the 800 metres at the

2000 Summer Paralympics The 2000 Summer Paralympic Games or the XI Summer Paralympics were held in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, between 18 and 29 October. The Sydney Paralympics was last time that the Summer Paralympics which were organized by two different ...

in Sydney, beating her team-mate and long-time rival Arleta Meloch into second place. After Sydney Niewidzial's career as an athlete was halted due to her classification being suspended by the

International Paralympic Committee The International Paralympic Committee (IPC; german: Internationales Paralympisches Komitee) is an international non-profit organisation and the global governing body for the Paralympic Movement. The IPC organizes the Paralympic Games and fun ...

(IPC) following the cheating scandal at the 2000 Games. In 2009, the IPC decided to reinstate athletes with intellectual disabilities in readiness for the

2012 Summer Paralympics The 2012 Summer Paralympics, branded as the London 2012 Paralympic Games, were an international multi-sport parasports event held from 29 August to 9 September 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. They were the 14th Summer Paralympic Gam ...

in London. Niewiedział's return to major international athletics came when she was selected for the Poland team at the

2011 IPC Athletics World Championships The 2011 IPC Athletics World Championships was held in Christchurch, New Zealand from January 21 to 30, 2011. Athletes with a disability competed, and the Championships was a qualifying event for the London 2012 Paralympic Games. Ove1000 athlet ...

in Christchurch. There she competed in the

race, coming second to Meloch. Niewidzial followed this with a gold medal in the

at the

2012 IPC Athletics European Championships The 2012 IPC Athletics European Championships was a track and field competition for athletes with a disability open to International Paralympic Committee (IPC) affiliated countries within Europe. It was held in Stadskanaal, Netherlands and lasted ...

in Stadskanaal before winning her second Paralympic gold in the same event in London. Niewiedział had planned to retire after the London Paralympics, but the experience of competing in front of a cheering capacity crowd that the 2012 Games provided changed her decision. Further success followed at the

2013 IPC Athletics World Championships The 2013 IPC Athletics World Championships was the biggest track and field competition for athletes with a disability since the 2012 Summer Paralympics. It was held in Lyon, France, and lasted from 20 to 28 July. Around 1,100 athletes competed, ...

in Lyon where she took gold in her favoured 1,500m. She furthered this success two years later at the World Championships in Doha, taking three gold medals in the

400m The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics (sport), athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor runn ...

and the 1,500m races. In the build up to the

2016 Summer Paralympics ) , nations = 159 , athletes = 4,342 , opening = 7 September , closing = 18 September , opened_by = President Michel Temer , cauldron = Clodoaldo Silva , events = 528 in 22 sports , stadium = Maracanã , sum ...

, Niewiedział travelled to Italy to take part in the

2016 IPC Athletics European Championships The 2016 IPC Athletics European Championships was a track and field competition for athletes with a disability open to International Paralympic Committee (IPC) affiliated countries within Europe, plus Israel. It was held in Grosseto, Italy and too ...

in Grosseto. She won both of her races to take the 400m and 1,500m titles.

Notes

External links

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Barbara Bieganowska-Zając (Niewiedział)
at the {{DEFAULTSORT:Niewiedział, Barbara 1981 births Living people Polish female sprinters Polish female middle-distance runners Paralympic athletes for Poland Paralympic gold medalists for Poland Paralympic medalists in athletics (track and field) Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Paralympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Paralympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2020 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2000 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2012 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2020 Summer Paralympics World record holders in para-athletics Competitors in athletics with intellectual disability People from Nysa, Poland Sportspeople from Opole Voivodeship 21st-century Polish sportswomen