Claudia Poll

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Medal record
Women's Swimming
Competitor for Image:Flag of Costa Rica.svg Costa Rica
Olympic Games
Gold	1996 Atlanta	200 m Freestyle
Bronze	2000 Sydney	200 m Freestyle
Bronze	2000 Sydney	400 m Freestyle
World Championships (LC)
Bronze	1994 Roma	200 m Freestyle
Bronze	1994 Roma	400 m Freestyle
Gold	1998 Perth	200 m Freestyle
Silver	2001 Fukuoka	400 m Freestyle
World Championsips (SC)
Gold	1995 Rio de Janeiro	200 m Freestyle
Gold	1995 Rio de Janeiro	400 m Freestyle
Gold	1997 Gothenburg	200 m Freestyle
Gold	1997 Gothenburg	400 m Freestyle

Claudia Maria Poll Ahrens (born December 21, 1972) is a Nicaraguan-born swimmer from Costa Rica.

[edit] Career

Poll was born in Managua, Nicaragua, where her German parents lived for a short period. After the 1972 earthquake of Managua and rising political tensions, Claudia's parents decided to move south to Costa Rica. She has always asserted her Costa Rican citizenship, because it was there where she formed as a person and as an athlete.^{[citation needed]}

She began swimming under coach Francisco Rivas and quickly became one of the best in Central America, winning many regional titles.

At the 1996 Atlanta Olympics she won the Gold medal in the 200 m Freestyle event. The win was the first gold medal for Costa Rica in a summer Olympic game. It was a surprising win because she snatched the medal from the favorite Germany's Franziska Van Almsick. Dagmar Hase, also from Germany won the bronze.

In 1997, she was named by Swimming World Magazine as the Female Swimmer of the Year.

At Sydney 2000, Poll continued with her medal run and won 2 bronze medals. In Athens 2004, she just missed out on the 400 m Freestyle final, ending up 9th on the time table.

[edit] Doping

Claudia was accused of doping in 2002. She appealed the verdict but on 3 June 2002, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) dismissed the appeal against the decision of the FINA Doping Panel and decided to sanction her for a positive out-of-competition doping control with nandrolone metabolites, with a 4 year suspension.^{[citation needed]} The 4 year suspension was later reduced to 2 years in the course of harmonization of FINA and WADA doping rules. To this day Claudia still defends her innocence.

[edit] Personal

Poll became a mother for the first time on August 8, 2007. Her daughter's name is Cecilia.

Records
Preceded by Incumbent	Women's 400 metre freestyle world record holder (short course) April 18, 1997 – January 26, 2003	Succeeded by Image:Flag of the United States.svg Lindsay Benko
Awards
Preceded by Image:Flag of South Africa.svg Penny Heyns	World Swimmer of the Year 1997	Succeeded by Image:Flag of the United States.svg Jenny Thompson

v • d • e Olympic champions in women's 200 m freestyle
1968: Debbie Meyer | 1972: Shane Gould | 1976: Kornelia Ender | 1980: Barbara Krause | 1984: Mary Waite | 1988: Heike Friedrich | 1992: Nicole Haislett | 1996: Claudia Poll | 2000: Susie O'Neill | 2004: Camelia Potec

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