Irene Ekelund
{{Short description|Swedish sprinter (born 1997)}}
{{Infobox sportsperson
| name = Irene Ekelund
| image = File:Irene Ekelund 2014.jpg
| imagesize = 200px
| caption = Irene Ekelund during the Swedish Sports Awards in January 2014
| fullname = Irene Michelle Ekelund
| nickname =
| nationality = Swedish
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1997|3|8|df=y}}
| birth_place = Pakistan
| residence = Karlstad, Sweden
| height=
| weight=
| country = {{flagcountry|SWE}}
| sport = Athletics
| event =
| club = Malmö AI (2013–)
| coach = Lasse Eriksson
| worlds =
| regionals =
| nationals =
| olympics =
| highestranking =
| medaltemplates =
{{MedalSport| Women's athletics}}
{{MedalCountry|{{SWE}} }}
{{MedalCompetition|World Junior Championships}}
{{MedalSilver|2014 Oregon|200 m}}
{{MedalCompetition|World Youth Championships}}
{{MedalGold|2013 Donetsk|200 m}}
}}
Irene Michelle Ekelund ({{IPA|sv|ajriːnɪ eːkɛlɵnd|pron}};{{fix|text=stress and tone?}} born 8 March 1997) is a Swedish track and field sprint athlete who competes internationally for Sweden. On 14 July 2013 Ekelund won the gold medal at the World Youth Championships in Donetsk when she finished first in the 200 metres final. It was also the first gold medal for Sweden in a sprint event in a global championship ever.{{cite web |title=Ekelund vann guld på 22,92 |language=Swedish |publisher=Sveriges Television |date=14 July 2013 |url=http://www.svt.se/sport/friidrott/ekelund-vann-guld-pa-22-920 |accessdate=14 July 2013}}
Biography
Ekelund was born in Pakistan to a Swedish father and an Angolan mother during her father's United Nations-service in Pakistan. The family later moved back to Sweden and settled in Karlstad where she today lives with her mother and five siblings. She currently studies at the stylist program at her high school (gymnasium) in her hometown, and competes for a club in the southern Swedish city of Malmö, Malmö Allmänna Idrottsförening (MAI).{{cite web |title=Krönikan: Fin friidrott festlig feelgood-faktor för folket |language=Swedish |last=Magnusson |first=Dan |publisher=Smålandsposten |date=11 February 2013 |url=http://www.smp.se/sport/sportkronikor/kronikan-fin-friidrott-festlig-feelgood-faktor-for-folket(3644511).gm |accessdate=14 July 2013}} Ekelund has several times stated that she is not very interested in athletics, and that she does not have any real idols in the sport.{{cite web |title=Ekelund: "Det värsta jag varit med om" |language=Swedish |publisher=Expressen |date=22 June 2014 |url=http://www.expressen.se/sport/friidrott/ekelund-det-varsta-jag-varit-med-om/ |accessdate=27 June 2014}}
Ekelund currently holds the Swedish indoor record in 200 metres.{{cite web |title=Indoors round-up: Torneus, Lavillenie, Moreira hit form at Nationals |publisher=European Athletic Association |date=18 February 2013 |url=http://www.european-athletics.com/32nd-european-athletics-indoor-championships/11760-indoors-round-up-torneus-lavillenie-moreira-hit-form-at-nationals.html |accessdate=23 February 2013 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20130409144255/http://www.european-athletics.com/32nd-european-athletics-indoor-championships/11760-indoors-round-up-torneus-lavillenie-moreira-hit-form-at-nationals.html |archivedate=9 April 2013 }} At the Swedish National Indoor Championships in Norrköping 2013, Ekelund won gold medals in the distances 60 metres and 200 metres. Her international debut took place in the indoor-international between Sweden, Finland and Norway in Växjö, Sweden at January 20, 2013.{{cite web |title=Laget till Nordenkampen |language=Swedish |publisher=Swedish Athletic Association |date=4 February 2013 |url=http://www.friidrott.se/nyheter.aspx?id=14792 |accessdate=14 July 2013 |archive-date=30 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190330010222/http://www.friidrott.se/nyheter.aspx?id=14792 |url-status=dead }} Later in 2013 she also made her international championship-debut when she competed in the World Youth Championships in Donetsk, Ukraine. She won the gold medal in 200 metres and finished fifth in the 100 metres final. She became the first Swedish athlete to win an international championship in a sprint event. Thanks to her performance, she was awarded "Newcomer of the Year" at the Swedish Sports Award.
Achievements
| {{AchievementTable|Event=yes}}
|rowspan=2|2013 |rowspan=2|World Youth Championships |{{sort|05|5th}} |11.62 |
| bgcolor=gold|{{sort|01|1st}}
|22.92 CR |
| rowspan=4|2014
|rowspan=2|World Junior Championships |rowspan=2|Eugene, United States |{{sort|06|6th}} |11.61 |
| bgcolor=silver|{{sort|02|2nd}}
|22.97 |
| rowspan=2|European Championships
|rowspan=2|Zürich, Switzerland |{{sort|13|13th}} (sf) |23.26 |
| {{sort|06|6th}}
|44.36 |
| 2015
|European Indoor Championships |19th (sf) |60 m |7.37 |
| 2019
|European Indoor Championships |19th (sf) |60 m |7.41 |
=Personal bests=
| class="wikitable" | ||||
| Track
! width=50|Event ! width=50|Time ! width=150|Venue ! width=120|Date ! Note | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| align=center
! rowspan=2| Outdoor |100 m | 11.35 | Kil, Sweden | 8 June 2013 | NJR |
| align=center
|200 m | 22.92 | Donetsk, Ukraine | 14 July 2013 | NJR |
| align=center
! rowspan=2| Indoor |60 m | 7.26 | Sätra, Sweden | 21 February 2015 | NJR |
| align=center
|200 m | 23.15 | Norrköping, Sweden | 17 February 2013 | NR |
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{World Athletics|sweden/irene-ekelund-14403224}}
- {{European Athletics|sweden/irene-ekelund-14403224|old_id=e/athlete=125507-ekelund-irene}}
{{Footer IAAF World Youth Champions 200 Metres Women}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ekelund, Irene}}
Category:Swedish female sprinters
Category:Swedish expatriates in Pakistan
Category:Swedish people of Angolan descent
Category:Swedish Athletics Championships winners