Elena Pautova (born 22 January 1986) 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 Russia competing mainly in category T12 middle-distance events. She is a two times Paralympic gold medalist and three times World Championship gold medalist in the 1500m race. Pautova also broke the world record in the T13 5000m event in 2003.

Career history

Pautova, who is visually impaired, first took to athletics while she attended a specialised boarding school in

Armavir, Russia Armavir (russian: Армави́р) is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the left bank of the Kuban River. Population: As of 2020, the city has a population of 188,960, while the agglomeration has a population of 207,570. Armavir w ...

. She began competing competitively whilst still a teenager, and she competed in both middle and long-distance events. At the age of 17 she entered an international meet in Quebec, Canada and ran in a T13 5000m contest. There she posted an officially recognized time of 17:50.45, a new world record. Due to the rarity of official T13 5000m races at major competitions, Pautova's record, as of 2013, still stands. Pautova then switched to middle-distance events, and at the age of 18 she was selected for her first

Paralympics 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 impaired ...

, chosen to represent Russia at the

2004 Summer Paralympics ) , nations = 136 , athletes = 3,806 , events = 519 in 19 sports , opening = 17 September , closing = 28 September , opened_by = President Costis Stephanopoulos , cauldron = Georgios Toptsis , stadium = Olympic ...

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

. It was an extremely successful competition for Pautova, winning the gold medal in the T12 1500m and a bronze medal in the T12 800m. In 2006, she travelled to Assen where she took part in the

Athletics World Championships Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competiti ...

. There she entered her favoured two events the 800, and 1,500m, and finished with an identical result to Athens; a gold in the 1,500m and bronze in the 800m. She returned to the Paralympics in

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

, China, winning two more bronze medals in the T13 1500m and the joint classified T12/13 800m. In 2011, she retained her World title in the 1,500m, successfully defending it 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, New Zealand. Then in the run-up to the 2012 London Paralympics, she took the gold, again in the 1,500m, at the 2012 European Championships in Stadskanaal. In London she posted a season's best of 4:37.65 to beat her nearest rival, Spain's Elena Congost, by almost seven seconds to take her second Paralympic gold medal. After her triumph in London, Pautova was awarded the Order of Honour, and received her medal form President

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...

at a ceremony held in the Kremlin. In 2013 Pautova secured a third World gold title in the 1,500m with a win 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, making her the undefeated World champion at that distance for eight years.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pautova, Elena Paralympic athletes for Russia Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Paralympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Paralympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Paralympics Paralympic gold medalists for Russia Paralympic bronze medalists for Russia Living people Russian female middle-distance runners World record holders in para-athletics 1986 births Recipients of the Order of Honour (Russia) Medalists at the 2004 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2008 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2012 Summer Paralympics Paralympic medalists in athletics (track and field) Athletes (track and field) at the 2020 Summer Paralympics Sportspeople from Krasnodar Krai Visually impaired middle-distance runners Paralympic middle-distance runners