Karen Forkel (born 24 September 1970 in Wolfen) is a German track and field athlete and an Olympic medal winner. In the 1990s she was among the world's best javelin throwers. Her biggest success came in the 1992 Summer Olympics when she took the bronze medal with a throw of 66.86 meters.[1]

Karen Forkel
Personal information
Nationality East Germany
 Germany
Born24 September 1970 (1970-09-24) (age 53)
Wolfen, Saxony-Anhalt, East Germany
Height1.72 m (5 ft 8 in)
Weight63 kg (139 lb)
Sport
Country East Germany
 Germany
SportAthletics
EventJavelin throw
ClubSV Halle
Achievements and titles
Personal best71.20 (1991)
Medal record
Women's athletics
Representing  East Germany
European Championships
Silver medal – second place 1990 Split Javelin
Representing  Germany
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 1992 Barcelona Javelin
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 1993 Stuttgart Javelin
European Championships
Silver medal – second place 1994 Helsinki Javelin

Her personal best throw with the new-type-javelin was 65.17 metres, achieved in July 1999 in Erfurt.[2] This ranks her fifth among German javelin throwers, behind Christina Obergföll, Steffi Nerius, Tanja Damaske and Linda Stahl.[2] With the old javelin type she threw 70.20 metres in May 1991 in Halle. This ranks her fifth among German old-type-javelin throwers, behind Petra Felke (who held the world record), Antje Kempe, Silke Renk and Beate Koch.[3]

Forkel represented SC Chemie Halle, which after the German reunification was renamed SV Halle. During her career she was 1.72 meters tall and weighed 63 kilograms.

International competitions edit

Year Competition Venue Position Notes
Representing   East Germany
1987 European Junior Championships Birmingham, United Kingdom 3rd 57.00 m
1988 World Junior Championships Sudbury, Canada 1st 61.44 m
1989 European Junior Championships Varaždin, Yugoslavia 1st 70.12 m
1990 European Championships Split, Yugoslavia 2nd 67.56 m
Representing   Germany
1991 World Championships Tokyo, Japan 12th 57.90 m
1992 Olympic Games Barcelona, Spain 3rd 66.86 m
1993 World Championships Stuttgart, Germany 2nd 65.80 m
1994 European Championships Helsinki, Finland 2nd 66.10 m
1995 World Championships Gothenburg, Sweden 6th 64.18 m
1996 Olympic Games Atlanta, United States 6th 64.18 m
1997 World Championships Athens, Greece 14th 60.70 m
1999 World Championships Seville, Spain 12th 54.65 m

References edit

  1. ^ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Karen Forkel". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020.
  2. ^ a b "Alltime toplist javelin throw". IAAF. 4 April 2010. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
  3. ^ ""Ewige" Bestenliste der deutschen Leichtathletik" ["Eternal" list of the best in German athletics] (PDF). leichtathletik.de. Deutscher Leichtathletik-Verband. 1 September 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 April 2008. Retrieved 4 April 2010.

External links edit