Andrea Eskau (born 21 March 1971) is a German handbiker,

Paralympic biathlon Para biathlon is a winter sport that combines target shooting and cross-country skiing. It is a race with contestants alternating between skiing through a cross-country trail and shooting at targets; missed shots result in a penalty of either e ...

, and cross country skier who was born in

Apolda Apolda () is a town in central Thuringia, Germany, the capital of the Weimarer Land district. It is situated in the center of the triangle Weimar–Jena–Naumburg near the river Ilm, c. east by north from Weimar. Apolda station lies on the Ha ...

and was a winner of three gold medals in

Summer Paralympic Games The Summer Paralympics, also known as the Games of the Paralympiad, are an international multi-sport event where athletes with physical disabilities compete. This includes athletes with mobility disabilities, amputations, blindness, and cerebr ...

Career

In 2014, she became a recipient of another gold medal at the

2014 Winter Paralympics The 2014 Winter Paralympics (), the 11th Paralympic Winter Games, and also more generally known as the Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games, were an international multi-sport event for athletes with disabilities governed by the International Par ...

Sochi Sochi ( rus, Сочи, p=ˈsotɕɪ, a=Ru-Сочи.ogg, from – ''seaside'') is the largest Resort town, resort city in Russia. The city is situated on the Sochi (river), Sochi River, along the Black Sea in the North Caucasus of Souther ...

, Russia. In 2013, she was a cross-country sit skiing winner at the IPC Nordic Skiing World Championship. Eskau also competed at the 2016 Paralympic games in Rio de Janeiro winning a gold medal in the H5 Cycling road race and taking home a bronze medal in the H4-5 time trial. In 2018, Eskau went on to compete at her third Winter Paralympmics and won gold in both the 10 km and 12.5 km sitting biathlon.

Personal life

She became a

paraplegic Paraplegia, or paraparesis, is an impairment in motor or sensory function of the lower extremities. The word comes from Ionic Greek () "half-stricken". It is usually caused by spinal cord injury or a congenital condition that affects the neura ...

in 1998 when she crashed her bike on the way to school. The accident resulted in many vertebra being broken, this left her without the use of her legs and therefore a

wheelchair A wheelchair is a mobilized form of chair using two or more wheels, a footrest, and an armrest usually cushioned. It is used when walking is difficult or impossible to do due to illnesses, injury, disabilities, or age-related health conditio ...

user.

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External links

* * * 1971 births Living people German female biathletes German female cross-country skiers German female cyclists Paralympic gold medalists for Germany Paralympic bronze medalists for Germany Paralympic silver medalists for Germany Biathletes at the 2010 Winter Paralympics Biathletes at the 2014 Winter Paralympics Medalists at the 2010 Winter Paralympics Medalists at the 2014 Winter Paralympics Medalists at the 2018 Winter Paralympics Medalists at the 2008 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2012 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the European Para Championships Cyclists at the 2008 Summer Paralympics Cyclists at the 2012 Summer Paralympics Cyclists at the 2016 Summer Paralympics People from Apolda Biathletes at the 2018 Winter Paralympics Paralympic biathletes for Germany Paralympic cyclists for Germany Cross-country skiers at the 2018 Winter Paralympics Paralympic cross-country skiers for Germany Paralympic medalists in cross-country skiing Paralympic medalists in biathlon Paralympic medalists in cycling Sportspeople from Thuringia Cyclists from Thuringia Sportspeople from Bezirk Erfurt 21st-century German sportswomen Cyclists at the 2024 Summer Paralympics {{Germany-crosscountry-skiing-bio-stub

Career

Personal life

References

Further reading

External links