Veronica Eriksson (formerly Martin Eriksson; born 15 June 1971) is a Swedish former
pole vault
Pole vaulting, also known as pole jumping, is a track and field event in which an athlete uses a long and flexible pole, usually made from fiberglass or carbon fiber, as an aid to jump over a #bar, bar. Pole jumping was already practiced by the ...
er.
Career
Born in
Stockholm
Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...
, Eriksson represented
IF Linnéa
IF Linnéa was a sports club in Stockholm, which was subsequently split into two clubs, IF Linnéa Friidrott and IF Linnéa Boxning. IF Linnéa Friidrott was the section for athletics and IF Linnéa Boxning was the section for boxing.
IF Linnéa ...
and
Hässelby SK
Hässelby Sportklubb ( English: "Hässelby Sports Club"), commonly referred to as Hässelby SK, or HSK is a professional sports club in Hässelby, Stockholm, Sweden. Founded in 1913, the club offers a range of sports, including football, athleti ...
in Sweden.
Studying in the United States and competing for the
Minnesota Golden Gophers track and field
The Minnesota Golden Gophers track and field team is the track and field program that represents University of Minnesota. The Golden Gophers compete in NCAA Division I as a member of the Big Ten Conference. The team is based in St. Paul, Minnes ...
team from 1991 to 1994, Eriksson won the 1993
with a mark of 5.50 metres.
In March 2000, a 5.80-metre jump in
, South Africa, became a new Swedish record. This was also the best mark throughout the career for the pole vaulter. , it marks fourth on the Swedish all-time list, behind
Armand Duplantis
Armand "Mondo" Gustav Duplantis (born 10 November 1999), is a Swedish and American pole vaulter who competes for Sweden. Regarded as the greatest pole vaulter of all time, Duplantis is the current List of world records in athletics, world recor ...
,
Oscar Janson
Oscar Janson (born 22 July 1975) is a Swedish pole vaulter.
He finished ninth at the 2002 European Athletics Championships, and competed at the 2004 IAAF World Indoor Championships without reaching the final.
His personal best is 5.87 metres, ac ...
and
Patrik Kristiansson, and equal to
Alhaji Jeng
Alhaji Jeng (born 13 December 1981) is a Swedish pole vaulter.
Jeng came to Sweden when he was just 3 months old, but retained his Gambian citizenship until he was 18 years old, when he applied for and was granted Swedish citizenship. He curren ...
. The same year, Eriksson was chosen to represent
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
in the
2000 Summer Olympics
The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, officially branded as Sydney 2000, and also known as the Games of the New Millennium, were an international multi-sport event held from 15 September to 1 October ...
, finishing 22nd in the qualification round, meaning not advancing.
[
]
Personal life
In February 2020, Eriksson told about her undergone hormone treatment, facial surgery, legal gender reassignment and name change to Veronica.
Achievements
Notes
References
External link
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1971 births
Living people
Swedish pole vaulters
Swedish LGBTQ sportspeople
Swedish transgender women
Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Olympics
Olympic athletes for Sweden
Athletes from Stockholm
Competitors at the 1999 Summer Universiade
LGBTQ track and field athletes
Transgender sportswomen
NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships winners
Minnesota Golden Gophers men's track and field athletes
Hässelby SK athletes
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