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Gwen Jorgensen

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Gwen Jorgensen
Jorgensen following her win at the 2013 ITU World Triathlon Series race in Stockholm.
Personal information
Full nameGwen Rosemary Jorgensen
NationalityAmerican
Born (1986-04-25) April 25, 1986 (age 38)
Waukesha, Wisconsin
Height5 ft 9 in (175 cm)
Weight130 lb (59 kg)
Sport
SportTriathlon (2010 - 2017)
Marathon (2017 - 2021)
Turned pro2010
Coached byBobby McGee
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)Track and Field
[1]

mile: 4:39.43 i
3000 m: 8:48.50
5000 m: 15:08.28
10000 m: 31:55.68
Half marathon: 1:10:58

Marathon: 2:36:13
Medal record
Women's Triathlon
Representing  United States
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 2016 Rio de Janeiro Individual
ITU Triathlon World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2015 Elite
Gold medal – first place 2014 Elite
Silver medal – second place 2016 Elite

Gwen Rosemary Jorgensen (born April 25, 1986, in Waukesha, Wisconsin) is an American distance runner and professional triathlete. She is the 2014 and 2015 ITU World Triathlon Series Champion. She has been named USA Triathlon's 2013 and 2014 Olympic/ITU Female Athlete of the Year.[2][3] She was a member of the 2012 Olympic Team and again represented the United States in triathlon at the 2016 Summer Olympics, where she won the USA's first ever triathlon gold medal with a time of 1 hour, 56 minutes, and 16 seconds.[4][5]

Career

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Jorgensen attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she swam and ran for the Badgers. She earned a master's degree in accounting, passed the CPA exam, and worked for Ernst & Young in Milwaukee as a tax accountant.[6] Soon after graduating and beginning her new job, USA Triathlon, who was pursuing former college swimmers and runners, encouraged Jorgensen to try the sport of triathlon. In 2010, she was selected as USA Triathlon's Rookie of the year following her silver medal at the World University Triathlon Championships in Spain.

At the 2011 World Championship Series in London, Jorgensen placed 2nd which earned her a spot on the 2012 US Olympic triathlon team. In the London Olympics she suffered a flat tire on the bike portion of the race and would finish in 38th place.[7]

In 2014, Jorgensen placed first in four consecutive World Triathlon Series races, something no other female had done in the history of the series.[8] Her winning streak extended through 2015, with a total of 13 consecutive series wins by the end of the year.[9] Her astonishing streak was finally ended in 2016 by Helen Jenkins in Gold Coast, Australia. By coincidence, Jenkins had been the last competitor to have beaten her before her streak, in Cape Town in 2014.[10] In 2015, she joined ECS Triathlon, an elite club, based in Sartrouville, France.[11]

At the 2016 Summer Olympics, Jorgensen won gold in triathlon. After winning the gold medal in Rio, Gwen entered the New York City Marathon and placed 14th with a time of 2:41:01.[12]

Jorgensen announced via Twitter on January 19, 2017, that she and her husband were expecting a child. She gave birth to a boy, Stanley, on August 16, 2017 - almost two weeks after his due date.[13]

In November 2017, Jorgensen announced that she was retiring from triathlon, and focusing on the marathon, with the goal of winning an Olympic gold in the discipline at Tokyo 2020.[14] However, after suffering injuries and undergoing heel surgery during her marathon build-up, Jorgensen announced on December 4, 2019, that she would focus on qualifying in track, in either the 5,000m or 10,000m.[15][16] However, she failed to qualify; she finished 9th in the 5,000m and was unable to complete the 10,000m.[17][18]

In October 2019, Jorgensen's mother and sister published Go, Gwen, Go: A Family’s Journey to Olympic Gold. In the book, they document Jorgensen's rise from a Milwaukee CPA to 2016 Olympic Champion and describe the family's experience raising an Olympian.[19]

Jorgensen returned to the ITU World Triathlon Series in 2023. She attempted to qualify for the US team for the 2024 Olympics triathlon. After finishing well back in two 2024 World Triathlon Championship Series races (15th in Yokohama and 33rd in Hamburg), she was not selected to the team, though she was invited to be an alternate.[20]

ITU competitions

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Jorgensen's ITU race results are:[21]

References

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  1. ^ Gwen Jorgensen IAAF
  2. ^ "USA Triathlon Announces Elite Triathletes of the Year for 2013". USA Triathlon. February 27, 2014. Archived from the original on April 18, 2014. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  3. ^ "USA Triathlon Names 2014 Elite Triathletes Of The Year". XTri.com. March 2015. Retrieved March 4, 2015.
  4. ^ Penny, Brandon (August 2, 2015). "Gwen Jorgensen And Sarah True Punch Tickets To 2016 Rio Olympics". United States Olympic Committee. Archived from the original on August 4, 2015. Retrieved August 5, 2015.
  5. ^ "Triathlon 🚵 👩 Tournaments". Autopica. August 20, 2016. Archived from the original on August 22, 2016. Retrieved August 21, 2016.
  6. ^ "Photos: At Home With Gwen Jorgensen". Triathlete.com. December 4, 2013. Archived from the original on July 28, 2014. Retrieved July 23, 2014.
  7. ^ "Gwen Jorgensen". Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on April 18, 2020. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
  8. ^ Helliker, Kevin (July 22, 2014). "Gwen Jorgensen: From Accountant to No. 1 Triathlete". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved July 23, 2014.
  9. ^ Carlson, Timothy (September 18, 2015). "Gwensanity reigns undefeated". Slowtwitch.com. Retrieved September 29, 2015.
  10. ^ Union, International Triathlon. "Results: Elite Women – 2016 ITU World Triathlon Gold Coast – ITU World Triathlon Series". Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  11. ^ "Jorgensen marche sur l'eau". Le Telegramme. September 6, 2015. Retrieved September 14, 2016.
  12. ^ "Olympic Triathlon Champ Gwen Jorgensen 14th at NYC Marathon". Competitor.com. November 6, 2016. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
  13. ^ "Stanley's Birth". Gwen Jorgensen. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  14. ^ "America's Next Great Marathoner? Triathlon Champ Gwen Jorgensen Going for Gold". Runner's World. November 7, 2017. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  15. ^ Middlebrook, Hailey (May 21, 2019). "Pro Marathoner Gwen Jorgensen Undergoes Heel Surgery". runner's World. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
  16. ^ Zaccardi, Nick (December 4, 2019). "Gwen Jorgensen, Olympic triathlon champion, to focus on track trials". NBC Sports. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
  17. ^ Mackinnon, Kevin (June 22, 2021). "Rio gold medalist Gwen Jorgensen 9th at US Olympic Track Trials". Triathlon Magazine. Retrieved July 18, 2024.
  18. ^ Hartnett, Sean (August 2021). "Olympic Trials Women's 10,000 — Emily Sisson's Strategy Plays Out". Track and Field News. Retrieved July 18, 2024.
  19. ^ Jorgensen, Elizabeth; Jorgensen, Nancy (2019). Go, Gwen, Go: A Family's Journey to Olympic Gold. BoD – Books on Demand. ISBN 9781782551911.
  20. ^ Land, Tomos (June 19, 2021). "Olympic Games Triathlon: Gwen Jorgensen breaks down what went wrong after missing out on USA team for Paris 2024". TRI247. Retrieved July 18, 2024.
  21. ^ "Gwen Jorgensen Results". International Triathlon Union. Retrieved August 24, 2016.
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