Qu Yunxia

Qu Yunxia ( Chinese  曲 雲霞  /  曲 云霞 , Pinyin Qū Yúnxiá ; * December 25, 1972 ) is a former Chinese medium and long-distance runner .

In 1990 she became vice-junior world champion in the 1500 meter run . A year later she won bronze at the Universiade over the same distance .

In 1992 she was sixth at the World Cross Country Championships and won the bronze medal in 3: 57.08 minutes at the Olympic Games in Barcelona over 1500 meters behind the Algerian Hassiba Boulmerka (gold) and the Russian Lyudmila Rogatschowa ( Silver).

In 1993 she was second behind Wang Junxia in the Chinese marathon championship , who set an Asian record in the same race. At the World Championships in Stuttgart she won gold over 3000 meters in 8: 28.71 minutes ahead of her compatriots Zhang Linli and Zhang Lirong .

At the Chinese national games of the same year, in which the women's world records in middle and long-distance running fell in a row, she broke the 13-year-old record of Tatjana Kasankina (3: 52.47 min) over 1500 m with a time of 3: 50.46 min. . One day later she was over 3000 meters in the lead with 8: 12.27 minutes, just like the first placed Wang Junxia (8: 12.19 minutes) by more than ten seconds below the old world record of Tatjana Kasankina. In the final, Wang was six seconds faster (8: 06.11 min), and Qu came in second with 8: 12.18 min.

The athlete, coached by controversial coach Ma Junren , retired in 1997 after a series of injuries.

Personal bests

• 800 m : 1: 56.24 min, September 9, 1993, Beijing
• 1500 m : 3: 50.46 min, September 11, 1993, Beijing (world record; improved by Genzebe Dibaba on July 17, 2015: 3: 50.07)
• 3000 m : 8: 12.18 min, September 13, 1993, Beijing
• 5000 m : 15: 04.36 min, January 21, 1997, Shanghai
• Marathon : 2:24:32 h, April 4, 1993, Tianjin

Web links

• Qu Yunxia in the database of World Athletics (English)
• Qu Yunxia in the Sports-Reference database (English; archived from the original )

Footnotes

1. ^ The Independent : Athletics: Qu Junxia set to retire . June 3, 1997