Luiza Gega

Luiza Gega
nation	Albania
birthday	5th November 1988 (age 31)
place of birth	Durrës , Albania
Career
discipline	800 meters , 1500 meters , 3000 meters , 3000 meters obstacle
Best performance	2: 01.31 min, 4: 02.63 min, 8: 44.46 min, 9: 19.93 min
society	Tirana
Medal table
European championships 0 × 1 × 0 × Mediterranean Games 1 × 1 × 0 × Universiade 0 × 0 × 1 ×
European championships silver Amsterdam 2016 3000 m obstacle  Mediterranean Games silver Mersin 2013 1500 m  Universiade bronze Kazan 2013 1500 m
last change: January 31, 2020

Luiza Gega (born November 5, 1988 in Dibra County , Albania ) is an Albanian athlete who specializes in middle distance . She is the Albanian record holder over 800, 1500, 3000, 5000 meters and 3000 meters obstacle and the record holder at the Mediterranean Games over 3000 meters obstacle. Her second place at the European Championships in 2016 was Albania's first medal win at the European Athletics Championships.

biography

Gega grew up in Durrës . She started athletics when she was 14 years old; a neighbor who is a coach noticed the fast girl. She attended a sports middle school and then studied sports at the University of Tirana , where she met her trainer Taulant Stermasi. Since 2012 she has broken one national record after another, some of which were over 30 years old. She is a member of the Albanian Armed Forces . From 2009 to 2016 she lived in Tirana ; there, however, their only training opportunity, the tartan track in the Qemal Stafa Stadium , was canceled in early summer 2016. In the absence of good training opportunities in the capital, she may have to move to Elbasan , she told the media. For the competitions in summer 2016 she prepared in Korça . At the European Championships in Amsterdam in 2016 , she won the silver medal over 3000 meters with an Albanian record in 9: 28.52 minutes.

At the Olympic Games in Rio , Luiza Gega carried the flag of Albania at the opening and closing ceremonies. At first it was planned that she would compete in the 1,500-meter run . However, she only started in the 3,000-meter obstacle course, in which she said she had to fight to be able to finish the race at all because she had a problem with a tendon since the European Championships .

In the 2017 indoor season, Gega improved her own indoor records and established the qualification standard for the European Indoor Championships in Belgrade . Over 1500 meters she made it to the finals and finished fifth. She also achieved fifth place and a new national record at the Diamond League meeting in Oslo in June 2017 over an obstacle course of 3000 meters.

At the 2018 Mediterranean Games in Tarragona , Gega not only won the obstacle course, but also achieved a new best performance in the Mediterranean Games with a time of 9: 27.73 minutes. At the end of May at the Golden Gala in Rome, she achieved a new personal best in the obstacle course. At the European Championships in Berlin in August, she finished fourth in a fast race with a good time. At the European Athletics Team Championship 2019 in Skopje , she dominated the races over 5000 meters with a new national record and over 3000 meters obstacle with a season best. At the 2019 World Championships in Doha , she competed in the 3000 meter obstacle. For the first time at world championships the qualification for the final succeeded; in this race she again achieved a new national record and ran under 9:20 minutes for the first time.

Major competitions

Starts for Albania
2011	European Indoor Championships	Paris	17. (VL)	800 m	2: 08.75 min
	Universiade	Shenzhen	7. (HF)	800 m	2: 04.13 min
	World championships	Daegu	28. (VL)	800 m	2: 03.21 min
2012	Indoor world championships	Istanbul	13. (VL)	1500 m	4: 13.45 min
	European championships	Helsinki	13. (VL)	1500 m	4: 12.54 min
2013	European Indoor Championships	Gothenburg	-	800 m	disqualified
	Mediterranean Games	Mersin	4th	800 m	2: 01.96 min
			2.	1500 m	4: 05.63 min
	Universiade	Kazan	3.	1500 m	4: 08.71 min
	World championships	Moscow	19. (HF)	1500 m	4: 08.79 min
2014	Indoor world championships	Sopot	6th	1500 m	4: 08.24 min
	European championships	Zurich	11. (VL)	1500 m	4: 12.25 min
2015	European Games	Baku	2.	800 m	2: 02.36 min
			1.	1500 m	4: 11.58 min
	World championships	Beijing	21. (VL)	1500 m	4: 09.36 min
2016	Indoor world championships	Portland	16. (VL)	1500 m	4: 16.12 min
	European championships	Amsterdam	2.	3000 m obstacle course	9: 28.52 min
	Olympic games	Rio de Janeiro	48. (VL)	3000 m obstacle course	9: 58.49 min
2017	European Indoor Championships	Belgrade	5. (F)	1500 m	4: 11.64 min
	World championships	London	-	3000 m obstacle course	not started
2018	Indoor world championships	Birmingham	17. (HF)	1500 m	4: 10.65 min
	Mediterranean Games	Tarragona	1.	3000 m obstacle course	9: 27.73 min
	European championships	Berlin	4th	3000 m obstacle course	9: 24.78 min
2019	European Athletics Team Championship	Skopje	1.	3000 m obstacle course	9: 25.80 min
			1.	5000 m	15: 36.62 min
	World championships	Doha	9.	3000 m obstacle course	9: 19.93 min

Personal best

All the best performances are Albanian records

Open air competitions

• 800 meters - 2: 01.31 min (Tbilisi 2014)
• 1500 meters - 4: 02.63 min (Doha 2015)
• 3000 meters - 8: 53.78 min (Elbasan 2016)
• 5000 meters - 15: 36.62 min (Skopje 2019)
• 3000 meters obstacle - 9: 19.93 min (Doha 2019)

Hall

• 800 meters - 2:02:27 min (Piraeus 2013)
• 1500 meters - 4: 06.66 min (Istanbul 2017)
• 3000 meters - 8: 44.46 min (Karlsruhe 2020)

Web links

• Luiza Gega in the database of World Athletics (English)

Remarks

1. ↑ Mirela Manjani , who was born in Albania, only won precious metal after she had taken on the Greek citizenship.
2. ↑ The European Games were also the 3rd league of the 2015 European Athletics Team Championship

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} Recorded Kombëtare. (PDF) Albanian Athletics Federation, 2014, accessed July 12, 2016 (Albanian). 
2. ↑ ^{a b c} Flamur-mbajtësja e Brazilit. In: top-channel.tv. May 21, 2016, archived from the original on July 12, 2016 ; Retrieved July 12, 2016 (Albanian). 
3. ↑ Luiza Gega in the World Athletics database (English)
4. ↑ ^{a b c d} Tirana Times: Luiza Gega claims Albania's first European medal ahead of Olympics debut. July 11, 2016, accessed July 12, 2016 . 
5. ↑ Lajme Durrës. In: durreslajm.com. July 10, 2016, accessed July 12, 2016 (Albanian). 
6. ↑ ^{a b} Jonida Halili: Atletikë, jeta dhe career e rekordmenes Luiza Gega | Lens. In: objective.al. May 29, 2013, accessed July 12, 2016 (Albanian). 
7. ↑ Mimi Kodheli. In: www.facebook.com. July 10, 2016, accessed July 12, 2016 (Albanian). 
8. ↑ GazetaExpress: Trajneri i Luiza Gegës shpërthen ndaj Qeverisë: Dhatë 1 mln euro të eliminuarëve, asnjë qindarkë për medalistët. July 10, 2016, accessed July 12, 2016 (Albanian). 
9. ↑ Rio 2016 Closing Ceremony - Flag Bearers. (PDF) In: IOC. August 21, 2016. Retrieved August 22, 2016 . 
10. ↑ Luiza Gega pas eliminimit: Më besoni, kisha dhimbje! Luftova vetëm për mos të lënë garën. In: BalkanWeb.com. August 13, 2016, accessed on August 14, 2016 (Albanian): “Ashtu siç dihej, dhimbjet nga dëmtimi i tendinës kanë qënë të padurueshme për Gegën. Ajo thotë se gjatë gjithë garës ka pasur dhimbje he se ka luftuar vetëm për të mos e lënë atë. " 
11. ↑ European Athletics Indoor Championships - Belgrade 2017. In: european-athletics.org. Retrieved August 12, 2018 . 
12. ↑ Luiza Gega, record kombëtar në 3000 metra me pengesa. In: Gazeta Monitor. June 16, 2017, Retrieved August 12, 2018 (Albanian). 
13. ↑ Athletics Videos: Luiza Gega takes the gold medal in 3000m SC in Mediterranean Games 2018 on YouTube , accessed on August 5, 2018.
14. ↑ Atletja Luiza Gega theu rekordin Kombëtar në Rome. In: proinformacion.com. June 2, 2018, Retrieved August 12, 2018 (Albanian). 
15. ↑ record Kombëtar në Botërorin e Atletikës: Luiza Gega befason në Doha. In: Lapsi.al. October 1, 2019, accessed October 1, 2019 (Albanian).