 Gevaert in 2008 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | 5 August 1978 (1978-08-05) (age 47) |
| Height | 170 cm (5 ft 7 in) |
| Weight | 60 kg (132 lb) |
Spouse | Djeke Mambo |
| Sport | |
| Club | V. A. C. Steenokkerzeel CA Valencia Terra i Mar[1] |
| Coached by | Rudi Diels |
| Retired | 2008 |
| Achievements and titles | |
| Olympic finals | 2004, 2008 |
| Personalbest(s) | 100 m – 11.04 (2006) 200 m – 22.20 (2006)[1] |
Medal record | |
Kim Gevaert (born 5 August 1978 inLeuven) is a formersprinter and Olympic champion fromBelgium.[2]
Her closest brush with a world title came in running four hundredths of a second behind three-time championGail Devers at the2004 IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics. At the next World Indoor Championships, in2006, she won thebronze medal in anational record time of 7.11 seconds.
On 9 August 2006 Gevaert won the100 metres at theEuropean Championships in 11.06 seconds. Two days later, she also won the final of the200 metres, which was celebrated together with fellow Belgian athleteTia Hellebaut, who had wongold in thehigh jump final only minutes before Kim Gevaert. With her first medal, Gevaert became the first Belgian gold medalist at the European Championships in 35 years and the first woman to win the sprint double since 1994.
At the2007 World Championships she won abronze medal in the4 × 100 metres relay, together with teammatesHanna Mariën,Olivia Borlée andÉlodie Ouédraogo. With 42.75 seconds the team set a new Belgian record. A few days earlier as best European athlete she had finished 5th in a thrilling 100 m final.
On her 30th birthday, three days before the opening of the2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, Gevaert announced that she would retire at the end of the 2008 season.[3]
At the 2008 Summer Olympics, Gevaert was in the best condition of her life. She reached the 100 m semifinals by ending 3rd in her quarterfinals, but after missing her start she finished sixth and failed to proceed to the finals.[2] In the finals of the4 × 100 m for women a couple of days later, Gevaert ran the final leg for the Belgian team and finished in second behind the Russians to bring home thesilver medal in a new Belgian record of 42.54 seconds. On 16 August 2016, it was announced that the IOC had officially disqualified the Russian 4 × 100 metres relay team afterYuliya Chermoshanskaya's re-tested samples revealed two illegal substances, awarding the gold medal to the Belgian team.[2] She was awarded the gold medal eight years late on 10 September 2016.[4]
On 5 September 2008, Kim Gevaert ended her career running the 100 m at theMemorial Van Damme inBrussels, Belgium, a race which she won in 11.25.
Gevaert has two brothers, Marlon and John, and a sister Sigrid. Marlon competed in sprint at the national level in Belgium before becoming a national sprint coach in New Zealand.[5] In 2010 Gevaert married her long-time partner and a fellow athleteDjeke Mambo. They have two sons and one daughter, who are bilingual, as the principal language of their father is French and of their mother is Flemish.[6]
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Representing Belgium | |||||
| 1996 | World Junior Championships | Sydney,Australia | 100 m | 10th (sf) | 11.74 |
| 200 m | 7th | 23.88(wind: -2.2 m/s) | |||
| 1999 | European U23 Championships | Gothenburg,Sweden | 100 m | 3rd | 11.39(wind: -0.2 m/s) |
| 200 m | 5th | 23.08(wind: -0.5 m/s) | |||
| 2002 | European Indoor Championship | Vienna, Austria | 60 m | 1st | 7.16 |
| European Championships | Munich, Germany | 100 m | 2nd | 11.22 | |
| 200 m | 2nd | 22.53 | |||
| 2003 | 1st IAAF World Athletics Final | Monte Carlo, Monaco | 200 m | 4th | 22.95 |
| 2004 | World Indoor Championships | Budapest, Hungary | 60 m | 2nd | 7.12NR |
| Olympic Games | Athens, Greece | 200 m | 6th | 22.84 | |
| 2005 | European Indoor Championships | Madrid, Spain | 60 m | 1st | 7.16 |
| 2006 | World Indoor Championships | Moscow, Russia | 60 m | 3rd | 7.11NR |
| European Championships | Gothenburg, Sweden | 100 m | 1st | 11.06 (First Belgian woman to win a gold medal in this event.) | |
| 200 m | 1st | 22.68 | |||
| 2007 | European Indoor Championship | Birmingham, England | 60 m | 1st | 7.12 (7.10 in the semi-finalNR) |
| World Championships | Osaka, Japan | 100 m | 5th | 11.05 (First European woman) | |
| 4 × 100 m | 3rd | 42.75NR | |||
| 2008 | Olympic Games | Beijing Olympic Stadium,Beijing, China | 4 × 100 m | 1st | 42.54NR |
| Memorial Van Damme | Brussels, Belgium | 100 m | 1st | 11.25 (last event before her retirement) | |
|
 Belgium at the Olympics – Post-war Belgian Olympic champions (women) | |
|---|---|
|
European Athletics Championships champions in women's100 metres | |
|---|---|
|
European Athletics Championships champions in women's200 metres | |
|---|---|
|
European Athletics Indoor Champions in women's60 metres | |
|---|---|
| |
The 1967–1969, 1972 and 1981 races were over50 metres |
World University Games champions in women's200 metres | |
|---|---|
|
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
