Irina Bondarchuk (; born 17 September 1952) is a Russian former

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

long-distance runner Long-distance running, or endurance running, is a form of continuous running over distances of at least . Physiologically, it is largely Aerobic exercise, aerobic in nature and requires stamina as well as mental strength. Within endurance ru ...

. Bondarchuk's greatest successes were in

cross country running Cross country running is a sport in which teams and individuals run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain such as dirt or grass. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and soil, earth, pass through woodlands and ope ...

. She was the individual silver medallist at the

1980 IAAF World Cross Country Championships The 1980 IAAF World Cross Country Championships was held in Paris, France, at the Hippodrome de Longchamp on March 9, 1980. A report on the event was given in the Evening Times. Complete results for men, junior men, women, medallists, ...

and took three team titles between 1977 and 1981. She also placed fourth individually in 1979 and took a team silver medal in 1985. This was a period of much success for the Soviet women, with

Lyudmila Bragina Lyudmila Ivanovna Bragina (, born 24 July 1943) is a retired Soviet and Russian middle distance runner. She competed for the Soviet Union in the 1500 m at the 1972 and 1976 Olympics; she won the event in 1972 and finished fifth in 1976. In July ...

, Yelena Sipatova,

Giana Romanova Giana Romanova (born 10 March 1954) is a retired female middle-distance runner who represented the USSR in the 1970s. She set her personal best in the women's 1500 metres (3:59.01) on 3 September 1978 at the European Championships in Prague, Czec ...

and

Svetlana Ulmasova Svetlana Ulmasova (; born 4 February 1953, died 6 April 2009) was a long-distance runner from the Soviet Union and a former world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officia ...

being other leading Soviet athletes of the time. In

track running Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

, Bondarchuk was a four-time national champion with one indoor and one outdoor title in the

3000 metres The 3000 metres or 3000-metre run is a track running event, also commonly known as the "3K" or "3K run", where 7.5 laps are run around an outdoor 400 m track, or 15 laps around a 200 m indoor track. It is debated whether the 3000 m sho ...

and two titles in the

5000 metres The 5000 metres or 5000-metre run is a common long-distance running event in track and field, approximately equivalent to or . It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics, run over laps of a sta ...

. She was the first ever Soviet champion in the women's 5000 m in 1980, as the event was added to the standard programme that year. She represented the Soviet Union at the

1974 European Athletics Championships The 11th European Athletics Championships of 1974 were held from 2 September to 8 September in Italy, at Rome's Stadio Olimpico. Contemporaneous reports on the event were given in the Glasgow Herald. Men's results Complete results were p ...

over 3000 m, finishing ninth. She had her highest season ranking in the 5000 m in 1980, with her time of 15:35.0 minutes being the second best after America's

Jan Merrill Janice "Jan" Melbourne Merrill (born June 18, 1956) is a retired American runner. She was the dominant long-distance runner of the middle 1970s, a notable front runner, her uniform with the large "M" on her chest would usually break away to an in ...

. She again neared the top of the profession in 1982 when she won at the Brothers Znamensky Memorial in a time of 15:12.62 minutes, placing third in the global rankings behind

Mary Slaney Mary Teresa Slaney (formerly Tabb, née Decker, born August 4, 1958) is an American retired middle-distance and long-distance runner. During her career, she won gold medals in the 1500 meters and 3000 meters at the 1983 World Championships an ...

and

Grete Waitz Grete Waitz (, 1 October 195319 April 2011) was a Norwegian marathon runner and former world record holder. In 1979, at the New York City Marathon, she became the first woman in history to run the marathon in under two and a half hours. Waitz ...

. Bondarchuk focused more on longer distances in her late career and set bests of 2:35:17 hours for the

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of kilometres ( 26 mi 385 yd), usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There ...

in 1984 and 33:55.98 minutes for the

10,000 metres The 10,000 metres or the 10,000-metre run is a common long-distance track running event. The event is part of the athletics programme at the Olympic Games and the World Athletics Championships, and is common at championship-level events. The ...

in 1986.Irina Bondarchuk
All-Athletics. Retrieved on 2016-03-06. Bondarchuk relocated to the United States in the 1990s and continued her long-distance career there. She made six appearances at the

Austin Marathon The Austin Marathon (officially known as Ascension Seton Austin Marathon presented by Under Armour for sponsorship reasons) is an annual marathon held in Austin, Texas, since 1992. The race weekend also features a half marathon and a 5K run wi ...

, winning in 1994 and coming runner-up in 1995. She also had five finishes at the

Houston Marathon The Houston Marathon is an annual marathon usually held every January in Houston, Texas, United States, since 1972. With thousands of runners and spectators, it is the largest single day sporting event in the city. It is run concurrently wit ...

, with her best finish being 13th place. She twice competed at the

Boston Marathon The Boston Marathon is an annual marathon race hosted by eight cities and towns in greater Boston in eastern Massachusetts, United States. It is traditionally held on Patriots' Day, the third Monday of April. Begun in 1897, the event was ins ...

(1993 and 1995) and was within the top 20 both times. She continued to compete as entered her forties and regularly finished in the top twenty of high profile American road races in the late 1990s.Irina Bondarchuk

Association of Road Racing Statisticians The Association of Road Racing Statisticians is an independent, non-profit organization that collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics regarding road running races. The primary purpose of the ARRS is to maintain a valid list of world road record ...

. Retrieved on 2016-03-06.

Personal bests

– 8:42.84 min (1982) *

– 15:12.62 min (1982) *

– 33:55.98 min (1986) *

Marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of kilometres ( 26 mi 385 yd), usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There ...

– 2:35:17 hrs (1984)

International competitions

National titles

Soviet Athletics Championships The Soviet Athletics Championships () was an annual outdoor track and field competition organised by the Soviet Athletics Federation, which served as the Soviet national championship for the sport. The early history of event traces back to two e ...

**3000 metres: 1977Soviet Championships
GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2016-03-06. **5000 metres: 1980, 1982 *

Soviet Indoor Athletics Championships The Soviet Indoor Athletics Championships () was an annual indoor track and field competition organised by the Soviet Athletics Federation, which served as the Soviet national championship for the sport. Typically held over two to three days in Fe ...

**3000 metres: 1976Soviet Indoor Championships
GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2016-03-06.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bondarchuk, Irina Living people 1952 births Soviet female long-distance runners Russian female long-distance runners Soviet female marathon runners Russian female marathon runners Soviet Athletics Championships winners 20th-century Russian sportswomen