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Chris Witty

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Chris Witty
Personal information
Full nameChristine Diane Witty
Born (1975-06-23) June 23, 1975 (age 49)
West Allis, Wisconsin, U.S.
Height167 cm (5 ft 6 in)
Weight66 kg (146 lb)
Sport
Country United States
SportTrack cycling
Speed skating
Medal record
Women's speed skating
Representing the  United States
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 2002 Salt Lake City 1000 m
Silver medal – second place 1998 Nagano 1000 m
Bronze medal – third place 1998 Nagano 1500 m
World Single Distance Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2000 1000 m
Gold medal – first place 1998 1000 m
Silver medal – second place 1996 1000 m
Updated on September 6, 2014

Christine Diane Witty (born June 23, 1975) is an American speed skater and racing cyclist and participated in the Olympic Games in both sports.

She won medals at both 1000 and 1500 meters in the 1998 Winter Olympics. In 2002, she won the Olympic gold medal at the 1000 meters in Salt Lake City, setting a world record in the process.

In 1996 she became World Champion Sprint, in 1997 and 1998 she became second and in 2000 she became third.

In 1998 she won the gold medal at the World Single Distance Championships at the 1000 m, in 1996 the silver and in 2000 the bronze medal at the same distance.[1]

In 2000, she placed fifth overall in the 500 m cycling time trials at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, becoming only the ninth American ever to compete in both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games.[2]

In 2006, she was elected by her teammates to carry the United States flag at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin.[3]

Personal life

[edit]

Witty has reported that she had experienced childhood abuse from a trusted neighbor, Alex Witty, since she was 4 till the age of 11 years, and she kept the secret for years.[4][5][6] Witty currently lives with her partner, former Dutch long track speed skater Frouke Oonk.[7]

Records

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Personal records
Women's speed skating
Event Result Date Location Notes
500 m 38.36 2002-02-14 Salt Lake City, Utah
1000 m 1:13.83 2002-02-17 Salt Lake City, Utah
1500 m 1:55.71 2002-02-20 Salt Lake City, Utah
3000 m 4:22.57 1998-03-14 Heerenveen
5000 m 7:38.20 1998-03-15 Heerenveen

Source: SpeedskatingResults.com[8]

Event Time Date Venue
1000 m 1:15.43 November 23, 1997 Calgary
1000 m 1:14.96 March 28, 1998 Calgary
1000 m 1:14.58 March 3, 2001 Calgary
1000 m 1:13.83 February 17, 2002 Salt Lake City

Source: SpeedSkatingStats.com[9]

Witty holds the 1000m Olympic Record with a time of 1:13.83 which was set at the 2002 Olympic Winter games in the Utah Olympic Oval, Salt Lake City, Utah.

Achievements

[edit]
  • 1996 World Sprint Championships: gold
  • 1996 World Single Distance Championships, 1000 m: silver
  • 1997 World Sprint Championships: bronze
  • 1998 World Sprint Championships: bronze
  • 1998 Olympic Winter Games, 1000 m: silver
  • 1998 Olympic Winter Games, 1500 m: bronze
  • 1998 World Single Distance Championships, 1000 m: gold
  • 2000 World Sprint Championships: bronze
  • 2000 World Single Distance Championships, 1000 m: bronze
  • 2002 Olympic Winter Games, 1000 m: gold

She competed in track cycling in the 2000 Summer Olympics, where she placed 5th in the 500m time trial.

References

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  1. ^ "Chris Wittty". teamusa.org. Archived from the original on May 7, 2016. Retrieved March 9, 2023.
  2. ^ "ESPN.com - OLY - Speedskater to pursue rare Olympic double". www.espn.com. Retrieved March 9, 2023.
  3. ^ VeloNews.com. "Witty to lead U.S. team in Turin ceremonies". VeloNews.com. Retrieved March 9, 2023.
  4. ^ "Beating abuse: Speed skater Christine Witty". January 4, 2006.
  5. ^ Thiel, Art; Columnist, P.-I. (February 10, 2006). "U.S. flag bearer Witty reveals dark secret of sexual abuse". seattlepi.com.
  6. ^ Kinkead, Lucinda Dillon (October 10, 2004). "Skating past pain". Deseret News.
  7. ^ "Witty: 'Een hele nieuwe identiteit' - schaatsen.nl". Archived from the original on February 28, 2014. Retrieved February 23, 2014.
  8. ^ "Chris Witty". SpeedskatingResults.com. Retrieved September 8, 2012.
  9. ^ "Chris Witty". SpeedSkatingStats.com. Retrieved September 8, 2012.
[edit]
Olympic Games
Preceded by Flagbearer for  United States
Torino 2006
Succeeded by