Kajsa Bergqvist

Infobox Athlete
playername = Kajsa Bergqvist

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imagesize = 220px
country = SWE
alias =
club =
datebirth = birth date and age|1976|10|12
placebirth = flagicon|SWE Sollentuna
height = height|m=1.75
weight = convert|59|kg|lb|0
turnedpro =
retired = 2007
pb = High jump (outdoor): 2.06 m
High jump (indoor): 2.08 m (World Record)
Heptathlon: 4952 points [ [http://www.iaaf.org/athletes/biographies/country=SWE/athcode=68437/index.html Kajsa Bergqvist's IAAF profile] ]
olympics = 3rd (Sydney, 2000)
worlds =
highestranking = 1st (Helsinki, 2005)
coaching =
updated =

Kajsa Margareta Bergqvist (Swedish, pronounced|ˈkajːsa ˈbærːjˌkvɪst) (born October 12, 1976, in Sollentuna, Sweden) is a retired Swedish high jumper. She has won one bronze medal in the Olympic Games, one gold and two bronze medals in the World Championships in Athletics and one gold and one bronze in the European Championships. Her personal outdoor record of 2.06 m, set in Germany in 2003, is also a Swedish record. Her indoor record at 2.08 m, set in Germany in 2006, is also the world indoor record.

Biography

Bergqvist grew up in Sollentuna, north of Stockholm, with her mother Elsa, father Gunnar and big brother Anders. Her interest in sport began when she was six years old and tried sports such as football, volleyball, badminton, swimming and cross-country skiing, none of which was able to keep her interest.

When she was ten years old, she was persuaded by her big brother, Anders, to compete in Rösjöloppet, a long-distance track event. After that event, she began to try out several athletic events.

Bergqvist continued to train in several athletic events until she was 15 years old, when a new coach, Bengt Jönsson, came to her club, Turebergs FK. Soon after his arrival, he and Bergqvist chose to concentrate on the event that was her best, high jump.

She attended Southern Methodist University in Dallas, TX, from 1995-1999 with a degree in Advertising. She was the NCAA champion in 1997 with a clearance of 1.93 in the rain at the Indiana University over Amy Acuff of UCLA ending her streak at two. She won the NCAA meet again in 1999 with a height of 1.90 in Boise. In the season 1999, she tied Acuff's collegiate outdoor record of 1.95 (6-6). That record is sometimes omitted as it was set in international competition after the NCAA meet.

In 2001 she moved from Sweden to Monaco.

By 2004, lack of progress and long travel distances caused Bergqvist to end the relationship with her coach, Bengt Jönsson. She joined a group of athletes (including Olympic gold medalist Christian Olsson) under Yannick Tregaro.

At a competition in Båstad, on July 18, 2004, Bergqvist tore her Achilles tendon. Due to the injury, she missed the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, but managed to return to form just in time for the 2005 World Championships in Athletics in Helsinki. There she made an impressive series of jumps to edge out Chaunte Howard for the gold medal. Her Helsinki victory earned the Svenska Dagbladet Gold Medal for that year.

In 2006 she had been ranked the number one female high jumper in the world but failed to win in that summer's European Championships in front of her home fans in Gothenburg, having to settle for a bronze medal.

In Arnstadt, Germany, on February 4, 2006, Bergqvist set her first world record. A first attempt indoor leap of 2.08 m to surpass Heike Henkel's 2.07 m leap on February 8, 1992. The record wasn't totally unexpected since she jumped 2.00 m already in the warm up for the competition.

Bergqvist chose not to compete in the 2007 European Indoor Athletics Championships, opting, instead, to concentrate on defending her world outdoor crown. She had not started the indoor season well, and was nowhere near the form which had seen her set the world record the year before. It did not pay off as she finished 7th in Osaka.

Bergqvist married director Måns Herngren on New Year's Eve in 2007 and shortly afterwards, on January 7, 2008, announced that she would retire from high jumping. She had found her life entering "a new phase" and that she no longer felt as motivated to keep competing, even after her break in 2007.

International medals

High jump

* Olympic Games
** 2000, Sydney - 1.99 m - Bronze
* World Championships in Athletics
** 2005, Helsinki - 2.02 m - Gold
** 2003, Paris - 2.00 m - Bronze
** 2001, Edmonton - 1.97 m - Bronze
* World Indoor Championships in Athletics
** 2003, Birmingham - 2.01 m - Gold
** 2001, Lisbon - 2.00 m - Gold
* European Athletics Championships
** 2006, Gothenburg - 2.01 m - Bronze
** 2002, Munich - 1.98 m - Gold
* European Indoor Athletics Championships
** 2002, Vienna - 1.95 m - Silver
** 2000, Ghent - 2.00 m - Gold
* European Athletics U23 Championships
** 1997, Turku - 1.93 m - Silver
* World Junior Championships in Athletics
** 1994 Lisbon - 1.88 m - Silver
* European Athletics Junior Championships
** 1995, Nyiregyhaza - 1.89 m - Silver

Other victories

High jump

* 1997: Bloomington, IN NCAA Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championship - 1.93 m
* 1999: Boise, ID NCAA Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championship - 1.90m
* 1999: Brussels (Golden League) - 1.97 m
* 2000: Stockholm (Grand Prix) - 1.96 m
* 2001: Vaasa (European Cup first league) - 1.92 m; Rome (Golden League) - 1.98 m; Monaco (Golden League) - 1.99 m; Berlin (Golden League) - 1.96 m
* 2002: Seville (European Cup first league) - 1.98 m; Lausanne (Grand Prix) - 2.04 m; Paris Saint-Denis (Golden League-meet) - 1.97 m; Stockholm (Grand Prix) - 2.00 m; Brussels (Golden League-meet) - 1.99 m
* 2003: Ostrava (Grand Prix) - 2.01 m; Lappeenranta (European Cup first league) - 1.96 m; Eberstadt (high jump-meet) - 2.06 m (outdoor personal best)
* 2005: Gävle (European Cup first league) - 2.01 m; Zagreb (Grand Prix) - 2.00 m; Madrid (Grand Prix) - 1.98 m; Stockholm (Grand Prix) - 1.95 m; Sheffield (Grand Prix) - 2.03 m; Monaco (World Athletics Final) - 2.00 m
* 2006: Doha (Grand Prix) - 1.97 m; Málaga (European Cup super league) - 1.97 m; Athens (Grand Prix) - 2.00 m; Stockholm (Grand Prix) - 2.02 m; London (Grand Prix) - 2.05 m; Eberstadt (high jump-meet) - 1.98 m; Stuttgart (World Athletics Final) - 1.98 m
* 2007; Vaasa (European Cup first league) - 1.92 m; Sheffield (Grand Prix) - 1.95 m

Trivia

*When competing at the 2005 World Championships, Bergqvist wore spikes bearing her name 'Kajsa'. They were later auctioned by the IAAF.

External links

* . Accessed August 11, 2005.
* - (in Swedish)
* " [http://ivetlalova.webcindario.com/kajsabergqvist.htm Kajsa Bergqvist Pictures] "
* " [http://www.iaaf.org/results/competitions/index.htmx IAAF - Competition sites] ".
*
* " [http://www.european-athletics.org EAA - European Athletic Association] ".
* " [http://www.european-athletics.org/index.php?inhalt=statistics/db/db&nav=nav/statistics EAA - Event Result Database] ".
*
* cite web | title=Swedish high jumper Kajsa Bergqvist retires| publisher=The Associated Press
url=http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/01/07/sports/EU-SPT-ATH-Sweden-Bergqvist.php | accessmonthday=January 07 | accessyear=2008
* [http://ivetlalova.webcindario.com/kajsabergqvist.htm Kajsa Bergqvist Pictures]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/athletics/4132214.stm BBC Sports Article - (2005 World Championships in Athletics)]

References