Diane Bell (judoka)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Diane Bell (born October 11, 1963 in Corbridge ) is a former British judoka who was twice world champion and three times European champion.

Athletic career

The 1.65 m tall Diane Bell fought in the lightweight until 1985. She experienced her international breakthrough at the 1982 World Championships . After three wins she lost in the semi-finals against French Béatrice Rodriguez , after a victory in the hope round against Austrian Gerda Winklbauer , Bell received a bronze medal. At the European Championships in 1984 , Bell and Winklbauer faced each other in the final, Bell won their first international title. The following year, Rodriguez won over Bell in the semi-finals of the European Championships in 1985 , with a victory over the Finn Riitta Rihtamo , the British won a bronze medal.

In the spring of 1985 Bell moved to light middleweight. In this weight class she won the final at the 1986 European Championships against Belgian Ann De Brabandere . At the 1986 Commonwealth Games she won the final against New Zealander Donna Guy . Three months after the Commonwealth Games, the 1986 World Championships were held in Maastricht . Bell won in the first round against the German Gabriele Ritschel , in the round of 16 against the American Lynn Roethke , in the quarter-finals against the Japanese Ryōko Fujimoto , in the semifinals against the Italian Laura Di Toma and in the final against the French Celine Géraud . At the European Championships in 1987, Diane Bell won a bronze medal. In November 1987 the world championships took place in Essen . Bell defeated the Japanese Noriko Mochida in the semifinals and Lynn Roethke in the final.

In May 1988 , Bell won her third European title by beating the Spanish Begoña Gomez after 1984 and 1986. At the 1988 Summer Olympics , women's judo competitions were offered as a demonstration sport. At the Olympic tournament she defeated Donna Guy, Norika Mochida and in the final Lynn Roethke. At the European Championships in 1989 Bell was defeated by the French Catherine Fleury-Vachon in the semi-finals, in the battle for bronze she defeated the Dutch Marjolein van Dommelen . Five months later, Bell lost to Jelena Petrowa from the Soviet Union at the World Championships in Belgrade . After three wins in the Hope Round, she finished fifth after losing to Gabriele Ritschel in the battle for bronze.

In 1990 Bell beat local hero Donna Guy in the final at the Commonwealth Games in Auckland . Bell also reached the final at the European Championships in 1990 and won silver behind Begoña Gomez. The Briton also took part in the Goodwill Games in 1990 , where she beat Lynn Roethke and the Brazilian Vânia Ishii , in the final she lost to Jelena Petrowa. At the 1991 World Championships in Barcelona she was defeated in the final against the German Frauke Eickhoff . In 1992 at the Olympic premiere of women's judo , Bell defeated Bogusława Olechnowicz from Poland in her first fight and then Susanne Profanter from Austria. After defeats against the South Korean Gu Hyeon-suk and against the Chinese Zhang Di , Bell finished ninth.

At the 1993 World Championships , Bell received a bronze medal after losing to Israeli Yael Arad in the semifinals and defeating Catherine Fleury-Vachon. In 1994 she reached the final of the European Championships and lost to the Belgian Gella Vandecaveye . In 1995 Bell again fought for silver, this time behind the Dutch Jennifer Gal . In 1996 she lost to Gella Vandecaveye in the semi-finals, but defeated the Spanish Sara Álvarez in the battle for bronze . At the end of her career, Diane Bell took part in the Olympic Games in Atlanta and was eliminated from Sara Álvarez in the round of 16.

After her career she became a judo coach and coached the British women's team for years as the successor to Neil Adams .

literature

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Bell, Diane
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British judoka
DATE OF BIRTH October 11, 1963
PLACE OF BIRTH Corbridge