Kristina Groves

{{Infobox speed skater

| name = Kristina Groves

| image = kristina_groves.jpg

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1976|12|4}}

| birth_place = Ottawa, Ontario{{cite web |publisher=Canadian Olympic Committee |url=http://olympic.ca/team-canada/kristina-groves/ |title=Kristina Grove: Official Canadian Olympic Team Website|date=5 October 2015 }}

| death_date =

| death_place =

| height = {{convert|1.75|m|ftin|abbr=on}}

| weight = {{convert|66|kg|lb st|abbr=on}}

| website =

| country = {{CAN}}

| sport = Speed skating

| worldcup =

| pb =

| updated = November 23, 2012

| medaltemplates =

{{Medal|Country|{{CAN}}}}

}}

Kristina Nicole Groves (born December 4, 1976) is a Canadian retired speed skater. She is Canada's most decorated skater in the World Single Distances Championships with 13 career medals in this event.http://vancouver.sportingnews.com/wolympics/athlete.asp?type=&country=CAN&page=SS&id=530688{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} She won four Olympic medals: she won two silver medals at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, in the 1,500 meters and team pursuit, and she won the silver medal in the 1500 m event and the bronze medal in the 3000 m event at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics.

As of 2012, she was ranked sixth on the women's Adelskalender, her teammates Cindy Klassen and Christine Nesbitt were ranked first and seventh respectively.{{cite web|title=Adelskalender: Small combination Women

|url=http://www.speedskatingstats.com/index.php?file=adelskalender&g=w&type=small

|publisher=SpeedSkatingStats.com

|access-date=September 12, 2012}}

Career

File:Kristina Groves (23-02-2008).jpg

Groves made her Olympic debut in Salt Lake City for the 2002 Winter Olympics held in the United States. She finished 20th at 1500 m, 8th at 3000 m and 10th at 5000 m.{{Cite web|url=http://www.ctvolympics.ca/team-canada/athletes/athlete=3266/results/index.html|title=Sports News, Opinion, Scores, Schedules | TSN}}

Four years later, during the 2006 Winter Olympics games held in Turin, Italy, Groves participated in five events (1000 m, 1500 m, 3000 m, 5000 m, team pursuit). She finished 5th at 1000 m, 2nd at the 1500 m, 8th at the 3000 m, 6th at the 5000 m, and 2nd in the team pursuit with the Canadian team.

She was the 2008 Single Distances World Champion on the 3000-m. She won a medal in every event that she skated at these championships, as she also won an additional 2 silver medals and 2 bronze medals.

During the 2008–2009 world cup season, Groves won 12 medals including four gold. During the 2009 World Single Distances Championships held at the new Richmond Olympic Oval, near Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, her career took an amazing turn when Groves became the most decorated speed skating athlete in the country at this event, surpassing the well-known Jeremy Wotherspoon with 13 medals, compared to his 10. She is also the world cup winner for a second year in a row at 1500 m event.

During the Calgary Essent ISU Worldcup held at the Olympic Oval, Groves set a world record on December 6, 2009, at the team pursuit with teammates Christine Nesbitt and Brittany Schussler with a time of two minutes 55.79 seconds.{{Cite web|url=http://www.ctvolympics.ca/worldcupwatch/sport=ss/newsid=21658.html#canada+sets+world+record+speed+skating+pursuit|title = Sports News, Opinion, Scores, Schedules | TSN}}

Groves qualified for 5 events for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games held in Vancouver and participated in the 1000 m, 1500 m, 3000 m, 5000 m and team pursuit, more than any other athletes on the Canadian speed skating team.{{Cite web|url=http://www.ctvolympics.ca/news-centre/newsid=24494.html#groves+raises+vancouver|title = Sports News, Opinion, Scores, Schedules | TSN}} In her first event at the Olympics, the 3000 metres, she won a bronze medal.{{Cite web|title=Crowd spurs Kristina Groves to bronze |url=http://olympics.thestar.com/2010/article/765637--crowd-spurs-kristina-groves-to-bronze|work=Toronto Star|access-date=2010-02-21|date=2010-02-15|author=Starkman, Randy}} On February 18 she finished fourth in the 1000 metres, .06 seconds behind the bronze medal winner. Her teammate Christine Nesbitt won the gold medal.{{Cite web|title=Groves pleased with fourth despite missing podium by a fraction of a second|url=https://vancouversun.com/Groves+pleased+with+fourth+despite+missing+podium+fraction+second/2585923/story.html|work=Vancouver Sun|access-date=2010-02-21|date=2010-02-19|author=Traikos, Michael}}{{Dead link|date=September 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} On February 21, she won a silver medal in the 1500 metres.{{Cite news|title=Canada's Groves takes silver in women's 1,500|newspaper=Toronto Sun|date=2010-02-21|access-date=2010-02-21|author=Friesen, Paul|url=http://www.torontosun.com/sports/vancouver2010/news/2010/02/21/12973171-qmi.html}} She became the 11th Canadian to win at least four medals at the Olympics (Summer or Winter).{{Cite web|url=https://www.tsn.ca/olympics/feature/?fid=9779|title=Most Canadian Olympic medals|publisher=The Sports Network|access-date=2010-02-21}}

Personal life

Born in Ottawa, Groves attended Fielding Drive Public School and Brookfield High School. She trained with the Ottawa Pacers Speed Skating Club.{{cite web |url=https://www.ottawapacers.ca |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031028203528/http://www.ottawapacers.ca/ |archive-date=2003-10-28 |title=Ottawa Pacers Speed Skating Club Home Page}} She majored in kinesiology at University of Calgary and graduated in 2004.{{cite web |url=https://www.ucalgary.ca/news/uofcpublications/oncampus/online/june14-07/groves |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080311000321/http://www.ucalgary.ca/news/uofcpublications/oncampus/online/june14-07/groves |archive-date=2008-03-11 |title=Alumna: Kristina Groves {{!}} University of Calgary}} Groves was inducted into the Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame in 2014.

Personal records

Groves' current Adelskalender score is 157.616, which places 6th of all time.

align=right \| 500 m	–	align=left \| 38.75
align=right \| 1000 m	–	align=left \| 1:14.51
align=right \| 1500 m	–	align=left \| 1:53.18
align=right \| 3000 m	–	align=left \| 3:58.11
align=right \| 5000 m	–	align=left \| 6:54.54

Source: SpeedskatingResults.com.{{cite web|title=Kristina Groves|url=http://speedskatingresults.com/index.php?p=17&s=132|publisher=SpeedskatingResults.com|access-date=September 12, 2012}}

= World records =

Event	Time	Date	Venue
class='wikitable'
Team pursuit	3:05.49	November 12, 2004	align=left\|Hamar
Team pursuit	3:03.07	November 20, 2004	align=left\| Berlijn
Team pursuit	2:55.79	December 6, 2009	align=left\| Calgary

Source: SpeedSkatingStats.com.

{{cite web|title=Kristina Groves

|url=http://www.speedskatingstats.com/index.php?file=skater&code=1976120401

|publisher=SpeedSkatingStats.com

|access-date=September 12, 2012}}

References and notes

External links

[http://www.speedskatingbase.eu/index.php?section=main&subsection=skater&id=7123 SpeedSkatingBase.eu PB's and link to results Kristina Groves]
[http://www.speedskatingstats.com/index.php?file=skater&code=1976120401 Results and records of Kristina Groves at SpeedSkatingStats.com]

{{Footer World Single Distance Champions 3000m Speed Skating Women}}

{{Footer World Single Distance Champions Team Pursuit Speed Skating Women}}

Category:1976 births

Category:Living people

Category:Canadian female speed skaters

Category:Speed skaters from Ottawa

Category:Speed skaters at the 2002 Winter Olympics

Category:Speed skaters at the 2006 Winter Olympics

Category:Speed skaters at the 2010 Winter Olympics

Category:Olympic speed skaters for Canada

Category:University of Calgary alumni

Category:Olympic silver medalists for Canada

Category:Olympic bronze medalists for Canada

Category:Olympic medalists in speed skating

Category:Canadian people of Norwegian descent

Category:Medalists at the 2010 Winter Olympics

Category:Medalists at the 2006 Winter Olympics

Category:World Allround Speed Skating Championships medalists

Category:World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships medalists

Category:21st-century Canadian sportswomen

align=right \| 500 m	–	align=left \| 38.75
align=right \| 1000 m	–	align=left \| 1:14.51
align=right \| 1500 m	–	align=left \| 1:53.18
align=right \| 3000 m	–	align=left \| 3:58.11
align=right \| 5000 m	–	align=left \| 6:54.54