Maria Coleman (born 21 July 1969) is an Irish former sailor, who specialized in the Europe class.[1] She represented her nation Ireland in two editions of the Olympic Games (2000 and 2004), and was once ranked second in the world for her signature class by the International Sailing Federation, the highest ever placement for an Irish sailor.[2] Coleman trained throughout most of her competitive sporting career for the Royal Cork Sailing Club.[3][4]
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality |  Ireland |
| Born | 21 July 1969 Birmingham, England, Great Britain |
| Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) |
| Weight | 65 kg (143 lb) |
| Sailing career | |
| Class | Dinghy |
| Club | Royal Cork Sailing Club |
Coleman made her Olympic debut in Sydney 2000, finishing a credible twelfth in the Europe class with a satisfying net grade of 86, but narrowly falling short from the top ten spot by a two-point deficit.[5][6]
At the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Coleman qualified for her second Irish team, as a lone female sailor, in the Europe class by placing fifteenth and receiving a berth from the 2003 ISAF World Championships in Cadiz.[7] Coleman endured most of the races with mediocre marks, before finding her form at the back end of the opening series with her first and only victory over a fleet of twenty-four other sailors. Coleman's triumph on the last round of the series, however, was not enough to move her towards the top of the leaderboard, ending her Olympic campaign in eighteenth overall with a net grade of 147.[8]
References
edit- ^ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Maria Coleman". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 12 August 2018.
- ^ "Ireland's Top Europe Sailor Honoured". World Sailing. 8 February 2002. Retrieved 12 August 2018.
- ^ O'Brien, David (24 September 1999). "Olympic hopes rest with Coleman". Irish Times. Retrieved 12 August 2018.
- ^ "Maria Coleman Sailor of the Month". Irish Independent. 30 December 2000. Retrieved 12 August 2018.
- ^ "Sydney 2000: Sailing – Women's Europe Class" (PDF). Sydney 2000. LA84 Foundation. p. 105. Retrieved 12 August 2018.
- ^ "Malahide sailor David in fine Olympic performance". Irish Independent. 6 October 2000. Retrieved 12 August 2018.
- ^ "Irish Sailing Association Announces Final Line-up for Athens 2004". World Sailing. 11 June 2004. Retrieved 12 August 2018.
- ^ "Sailing: Women's Europe Class". Athens 2004. BBC Sport. 15 August 2004. Retrieved 31 January 2013.
External links
edit- Maria Coleman at World Sailing
- Maria Coleman at Olympics.com
- Maria Coleman at OlympicChannel.com (archived)
- Maria Coleman at Olympic.org (archived)
- Maria Coleman at Olympedia
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