Kathrin Wessel (née Ullrich; born 14 August 1967) is a retired

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

long-distance runner who specialized in the

10,000 metres The 10,000 metres or the 10,000-metre run is a common long-distance track running event. The event is part of the athletics programme at the Olympic Games and the World Athletics Championships, and is common at championship level events. The race ...

. She was the 1987 World Championship bronze medallist, the 1990 European Championship silver medallist, and won the 1989 World Cup title. She also competed at three Olympic Games (

Seoul 1988 The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 1988, Seoul Cheon gubaek palsip-pal), was an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October ...

Barcelona 1992 The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...

, and

Atlanta 1996 The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

Biography

Wessel was born in Annaberg-Buchholz, Saxony, East Germany and competed for the club SV Dynamo. She first came to international prominence in 1987, as Kathrin Ullrich, when she won the European Cup 10,000 metres in only her second attempt at the distance. The 1987 season culminated in her winning a bronze medal at the World Championships in Rome, finishing ahead of

Olga Bondarenko Olga Petrovna Bondarenko (née Krentser, russian: О́льга Петро́вна Бондаре́нко-Кренцер;Liz McColgan Elizabeth Nuttall (née Lynch, formerly McColgan; born 24 May 1964) is a Scottish former middle-distance and long-distance track and road-running athlete. She won the gold medal for the 10,000 metres at the 1991 World Championships, and a ...

, who placed fourth and fifth respectively. In the 1988 Olympic final in Seoul, she followed the early break by world record holder

Ingrid Kristiansen Ingrid Kristiansen (née Christensen on 21 March 1956) is a Norwegian former athlete. She was one of the best female long-distance runners during the 1980s. She is a former world record holder in the 5000 metres, 10,000 metres and the marathon ...

, only to find herself with a 30 metres lead when Kristiansen dropped out after six laps due to injury. She would eventually finish fourth. Wessel had one of her biggest career wins in 1989, at the World Cup in Barcelona, when she outkicked Kristiansen in the final 200 metres to win comfortably. During the early 1990s, Wessel would remain one of the best 10 km runners in the world. At the 1990 European Championships, she won the silver medal behind Yelena Romanova. In 1991, she ran her best ever time of 31:03, which put her fourth on the all-time list behind Kristiansen, McColgan, and Bondarenko. She ended the 1991 season by finishing fourth at the World Championships in Tokyo, won by McColgan. In 1992, now competing as Kathrin Wessel, she looked set to be a major medal contender at the

1992 Olympics 1992 Olympics may refer to: *1992 Summer Olympics, which were held in Barcelona, Spain *1992 Winter Olympics ) , nations = 64 , athletes = 1,801 (1313 men, 488 women) , events = 57 in 6 sports (12 disciplines) , opening = 8 ...

, when she won the German title in June of that year in 31:20, just ahead of

Uta Pippig Uta Pippig (born 7 September 1965) is a retired German long-distance runner, and the first woman to officially win the Boston Marathon three consecutive times (1994–1996). She also won the Berlin Marathon three times (1990, 1992 and 1995); the 1 ...

, but in Barcelona she failed to finish her qualifying heat. From this point, she would cease to be a major force on the world stage, although she did manage fourth place at the 1994 European Championships and competed in her third and final Olympics in 1996. Late in her career, she moved up in distance to the Marathon, achieving her best time of 2:28:31, in 2001 at the Berlin Marathon.

Achievements

Personal bests

3000 metres The 3000 metres or 3000-metre run is a track running event, also commonly known as the "3K" or "3K run", where 7.5 laps are run around an outdoor 400 m track, or 15 laps around a 200 m indoor track. It is debated whether the 3000m shoul ...

⁣ – 8:44.81 min (1988) *

5000 metres The 5000 metres or 5000-metre run is a common long-distance running event in track and field, approximately equivalent to or . It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics, run over laps of a stan ...

⁣ – 14:58.71 min (1991) *

⁣ – 31:03.62 min (1991) * Half marathon⁣ – 1:11:09 hrs (2001) *

Marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...

⁣ – 2:28:27 hrs (2001)

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wessel, Kathrin 1967 births Living people People from Annaberg-Buchholz German female long-distance runners German female marathon runners East German female long-distance runners East German female marathon runners Athletes (track and field) at the 1988 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1992 Summer Olympics Olympic athletes of East Germany Athletes (track and field) at the 1996 Summer Olympics Olympic athletes of Germany World Athletics Championships medalists European Athletics Championships medalists Sportspeople from Saxony