Claudia María Poll Ahrens (born 21 December 1972) is a former
Costa Rican
Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the n ...
swimmer
Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water (e.g., in a sea or lake). Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic ...
who competed in the 200 m to 800 m freestyle events. She is
Costa Rica's only Olympic gold-medalist, having won the country's first Olympic gold medals at the
1996 Olympics
The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...
in the 200 meter freestyle. She is a multiple
national record holder in the freestyle events.
Her sister,
Silvia, won Costa Rica's first Olympic medal, the silver medal, at the
1988 Games. As of 2021, Claudia and Silvia are the only Costa Ricans to have won a medal at an Olympics. Claudia also competed at the
2000 Olympics
The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug language, Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport ...
, where she won two bronze medals.
Moreover, she was the first person from Central America to win a gold medal, and the only person to do so, until the
2008 Olympic Games when
Irving Saladino of
Panama
Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...
won a gold medal.
Career
Claudia Poll began swimming in 1979 under coach Francisco Rivas and quickly became one of the best in Central America, winning many regional titles.
At the
1996 Atlanta Olympics
The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...
she won the gold medal in the 200 m freestyle event. The win was the first gold medal for Costa Rica in the Summer Olympic Games. It was a surprising win because she beat the favorite German
Franziska van Almsick
Franziska van Almsick (; born 5 April 1978) is a German swimmer. She won her first Olympic medals in 1992 at the Barcelona Olympic Games aged 14.
Her career began at the SC Dynamo Berlin. She has the distinction of having the most career Oly ...
.
Dagmar Hase
Dagmar Hase (born 22 December 1969 in Quedlinburg, Saxony-Anhalt, East Germany) is a former German swimmer, specialised in the freestyle and backstroke. She won seven Olympic medals in her career, including a gold medal in the 400 m fre ...
, also from Germany, won the bronze.
In 1997, she was named by ''
Swimming World Magazine
''Swimming World'' is a US-based monthly swimming magazine that was first published in a magazine format as ''Junior Swimmer'' in January 1960. It concurrently runs online websites ''Swimming World Magazine'' and ''Swimming World News'', (known ...
'' as the Female Swimmer of the Year.
At the
Sydney 2000, Poll continued with her medal run and won two bronze medals. In
Athens 2004
The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...
, she just missed out on the 400 m freestyle final, finishing ninth in the heats.
In 2002, she was given a four-year doping ban after a failed test for norandrosterone, a metabolite the steroid
nandrolone
Nandrolone, also known as 19-nortestosterone, is an androgen and anabolic steroid (AAS) which is used in the form of esters such as nandrolone decanoate (brand name Deca-Durabolin) and nandrolone phenylpropionate (brand name Durabolin). Nandrol ...
. Her ban was later reduced by FINA to two years. Poll claimed that the test and sampling methods were flawed and protested her innocence.
At the
2006 Central American and Caribbean Games
The 20th edition of the Central American and Caribbean Games was held in the city of Cartagena, Colombia. The tournament began on July 15 and ended on July 30.
Host city
*Main host city
**Cartagena de Indias
*Subsites:
**Barranquilla, Colombia ( ...
, she set the
Games Records in the 200 and 400 freestyles (2:00.19 and 4:15.01), bettering the time her sister
Silvia set at the
1986 Central American and Caribbean Games.
Poll served as a swimming analyst for the U.S.
Telemundo
Telemundo (; formerly NetSpan) is an American Spanish-language terrestrial television network owned by NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises, a division of NBCUniversal, which in turn is owned by Comcast. It provides content nationally with prog ...
network's Spanish-language coverage of the
2012 Summer Olympics in London, though she and most of the Telemundo broadcast crew performed their duties at the network's studios in
Hialeah, Florida
Hialeah ( ; ) is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. With a population of 223,109 as of the 2020 census, Hialeah is the sixth-largest city in Florida. It is the second largest city by population in the Miami metropolitan area, wh ...
, accompanied by video provided by
Olympic Broadcasting Services.
Honors
*Declared "Honor Citizen" by the Costa Rican Congress in 1996 ;
*First Latin American woman to win an Olympic swimming gold medal;
*Costa Rican Sportswoman of the Year in 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, and 2000;
*Named Best Latin American Athlete in 1995, 1996, and 1997 by the
Agencia Prensa Latina
*Named 1997 World Swimmer of the Year by
Swimming World Magazine
''Swimming World'' is a US-based monthly swimming magazine that was first published in a magazine format as ''Junior Swimmer'' in January 1960. It concurrently runs online websites ''Swimming World Magazine'' and ''Swimming World News'', (known ...
; and
*Declared Costa Rica's Athlete of the Century in 1999.
Entrevista, ''76 kilos de oro'' (Spanish)
Personal
Claudia’s parents are both German, but they moved to Nicaragua before starting a family. Claudia and her sister Silvia were both born in Managua, Nicaragua, but moved shortly after Claudia’s birth in 1972. Political tensions were rising and after an earthquake
An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from ...
that shook the city, the family decided it would be safer to move to Costa Rica. She, her sister Silvia, and their mother are not related to Marlene Ahrens, another Olympic athlete and medalist and another Latin American of German descent.
Claudia graduated in Business Administration from the Universidad Internacional de las Américas
Universidad (Spanish for "university") may refer to:
Places
* Universidad, San Juan, Puerto Rico
* Universidad (Madrid)
Football clubs
* Universidad SC, a Guatemalan football club that represents the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatema ...
, San José
San José or San Jose (Spanish for Saint Joseph) most often refers to:
*San Jose, California, United States
*San José, Costa Rica, the nation's capital
San José or San Jose may also refer to:
Places Argentina
* San José, Buenos Aires
** San ...
, Costa Rica, in 1998. Poll became a mother for the first time on August 8, 2007. Her daughter's name is Cecilia. Claudia's older sister Silvia Poll was also a competitive swimmer who won a silver medal in 1988, Costa Rica's first ever Olympic medal.
See also
*List of doping cases in sport
The following is an incomplete list of sportspeople who have been involved in doping offences. It contains those who have been found to have, or have admitted to having, taken illegal performance-enhancing drugs, prohibited recreational drugs or ...
* World record progression 200 metres freestyle
* World record progression 400 metres freestyle
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Poll, Claudia
1972 births
Living people
Costa Rican female swimmers
Costa Rican female freestyle swimmers
Sportspeople from Managua
Olympic swimmers of Costa Rica
Swimmers at the 1996 Summer Olympics
Swimmers at the 2000 Summer Olympics
Swimmers at the 2004 Summer Olympics
Olympic gold medalists for Costa Rica
Olympic bronze medalists for Costa Rica
World record setters in swimming
Olympic bronze medalists in swimming
World Aquatics Championships medalists in swimming
Costa Rican sportspeople in doping cases
Doping cases in swimming
Costa Rican people of German descent
Nicaraguan people of German descent
Medalists at the FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m)
Nicaraguan emigrants to Costa Rica
Medalists at the 2000 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics
Olympic gold medalists in swimming
Central American and Caribbean Games medalists in swimming
Central American and Caribbean Games gold medalists for Costa Rica
Competitors at the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games