Violeta Szekely

Violeta Szekely, née Beclea (born 26 March 1965, in Dolheștii Mari, Suceava County)[1] is a Romanian former middle distance runner who competed mainly in the 1500 metres. She competed in two Olympic Games, in 1992 and 2000.

Violeta Szekely
Medal record
Women's athletics
Representing  Romania
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 2000 Sydney 1500 m
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 2001 Edmonton 1500 m

She was favored to win the 2000 Summer Olympics 1500 metres after a stellar season, but getting boxed in around the final curb would cost her the gold medal. She only got out about 80 metres from the end and while she made up considerable ground was unable to catch the ground lost while trapped inside to surprise winner Nouria Merah-Benida. She was also favored to win the 2001 World 1500 metre title after dominating the Golden League series, but was beaten out by bitter rival and teammate Gabriela Szabo. She did however win a share of the golden league jackspot, by winning all of her Golden league 1500 metre races this season.

Szekely retired after the 2002 season.

Doping

Beclea tested positive for steroids in February 1995 and was subsequently handed a four-year ban from sports.[2] She also lost the fourth place from the 1500 m at the 1995 IAAF World Indoor Championships.[3]

Personal bests
  • 800 Metres – 1:58.57 (1998)
  • 1000 Metres – 2:36.74 (1989)
  • 1500 Metres – 3:58.29 (2000)
  • One Mile – 4:21.69 (1993)
  • 2000 Metres – 5:48.8 (1998)
  • 3000 Metres – 8:47.3 (1998)

Major achievements
YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventNotes
Representing  Romania
1986 European Championships Stuttgart, West Germany 16th (sf) 800m 2:08.25
1990 European Championships Split, Yugoslavia 12th 1500m 4:16.45
1991 World Indoor Championships Sevilla, Spain 2nd 800m 2:01.75
1993 World Indoor Championships Toronto, Canada 2nd 1500m 4:09.41
1994 European Championships Helsinki, Finland 24th (h) 1500m 4:20.43
1999 World Indoor Championships Maebashi, Japan 2nd 1500m 4:03.53
IAAF Grand Prix Final München, Germany 1st 1500m 4:15.18
2000 Summer Olympics Sydney, Australia 2nd 1500m 4:05.15
IAAF Grand Prix Final Doha, UAE 1st 1500m 4:15.63
2001 World Indoor Championships Lisbon, Portugal 2nd 1500m 4:11.17
World Championships Edmonton, Canada 2nd 1500m 4:01.70

Other achievements:

References
  1. Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Violeta Beclea-Szekely". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 11 June 2013.
  2. Los Angeles Times: Lewis (64) Leads at New Orleans, 31 March 1995
  3. Istanbul 2012 – Notes on contents, IAAF, p. 45, retrieved 14 February 2015
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