 Rachel Yurkovich 2012 at "Spitzen Leichtathletik Luzern", Lucerne, Switzerland | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American |
| Born | (1986-10-10)October 10, 1986 (age 39) |
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| Weight | 135 lb (61 kg) |
| Sport | |
| Country |  United States |
| Sport | Track and field |
Event | Javelin throw |
| Coached by | Don Babbitt |
| Achievements and titles | |
| Personalbest(s) | Javelin: 200 ft., 4 in. (61.06 m) |
Rachel Yurkovich (born October 10, 1986) is an Americanjavelin thrower. She competed at the2012 Summer Olympics inLondon.
Yurkovich graduated fromNewberg High School inNewberg, Oregon in 2005.[1] She graduated from theUniversity of Oregon in 2009.[1] She was the NCAA women’s javelin champion in both 2008 and 2009.[1] She placed 11th in the finals of thejavelin throw at the2009 World Championships in Athletics.[2][3]
Yurkovich placed third at the2008 U.S. Olympic trials, but failed to qualify for the Games because she had not achieved the Olympic A standard.[4] The situation was reversed in 2012. Yurkovich place fourth in the2012 U.S. Olympic trials with a distance of 56.85 meters, but qualified because she had previously achieved the Olympic A standard while third-place finisher Kimberley Hamilton had not.[5] Yurkovich had exceeded the A standard by three inches at an April meet in France.[4] At the 2012 Olympics, Yurkovich's best throw during the qualifying round was 57.92 meters. She placed 13th in her group (24th overall) and did not qualify for the final.[6] Yurkovich made an error in her steps on the first throw, committed a foot fault on the second throw, and achieved her best distance on her third throw.[7]
Yurkovich is married to a former Danish pole vaulter,Piotr Buciarski, who also competed for the University of Oregon.[8] She and Piotr have two children together, Maya and Maksymilian.
