Wikipedia

Jüri Jaanson

Jüri Jaanson (born 14 October 1965) is the most successful Estonian rower of all time and the winner of five medals at World Rowing Championships.

Jüri Jaanson
Jüri Jaanson in 2011
Personal information
NationalityEstonian
Born (1965-10-14) 14 October 1965 (age 60)
Tartu, then part of Estonian SSR, Soviet Union
Height1.92 m (6 ft 4 in)[1]
Weight94 kg (207 lb)[1]
Sport
SportRowing
Event(s)
M1x, M2x, M4x
ClubPärnu Sõudeklubi
Medal record
Men's rowing
International rowing competitions
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Olympic Games 0 2 0
World Championships 1 1 3
European Championships 1 0 0
Total 2 3 3
Olympic Games
Representing Estonia Estonia
Silver medal – second place2004 AthensSingle Sculls
Silver medal – second place2008 BeijingDouble Sculls
World Championships
Representing Soviet Union Soviet Union
Gold medal – first place1990 TasmaniaSingle Sculls
Bronze medal – third place1989 BledSingle Sculls
Representing Estonia Estonia
Silver medal – second place1995 TampereSingle Sculls
Bronze medal – third place2005 GifuQuadruple Sculls
Bronze medal – third place2007 MunichDouble Sculls
European Championships
Gold medal – first place2008 MarathonQuadruple Sculls

Biography

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Jaanson was born in Tartu, and had to overcome a particularly challenging childhood, brought on by a severe case of pneumonia at the age of 2. Doctors gave antibiotics which saved him, but which also left him almost completely deaf. He attended a school for the deaf until he obtained a primitive hearing aid at the age of 12, allowing him to attend a regular school. Still, being a loner, he struggled with fitting in. At Tartu University, when a coach introduced him to rowing, he took to it so passionately that he left university to focus on rowing.[2] He wears hearing aids on a regular basis and was also seen wearing them during his rowing competitions.

He became World Champion in Tasmania 1990 in the single sculls event. In 1995, he won the Diamond Challenge Sculls (the premier singles sculls event) at the Henley Royal Regatta, rowing for the Parnu Rowing Club.[3]

In 2004 at age 38, he won an Olympic silver medal in the single sculls event at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens.[4] In Beijing 2008 he won his second Olympic silver medal, this time in the double sculls event with Tõnu Endrekson[5] and became Estonia's oldest Olympic medal winner with the age of 42 years, 10 months and two days.[6] He is a member of the SK Pärnu rowing club located in Pärnu. In 2007, Jaanson became the oldest rower ever to win a World Cup event at the age of 41 in Amsterdam.[7]

Jaanson is among four athletes to compete in rowing at six Olympics, with Romanian Elisabeta Lipă in 2004, Canadian Lesley Thompson (cox) in 2008, and Australian James Tomkins.

On 18 November 2010, Jaanson announced his retirement. In July 2011 he was awarded with the Thomas Keller Medal, the highest honor in rowing.[8]

He is also a member of the Estonian parliament, the Riigikogu for the Reform Party.

Olympic Games

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World Championships

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European Championships

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  • 2008 Marathon, Greece – Quadruple Sculls (with Tõnu Endrekson, Andrei Jämsä and Allar Raja)

Rowing World Cup

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Overall wins

  • Single sculls: 1990, 1995
  • Quadruple sculls: 2005
  • Double sculls: 2007

See also

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References

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