Marina Kuč

Marina Kuč (Serbian: Марина Куч; born June 20, 1985 in Essen, Germany) is a former German and Montenegrin swimmer, who specialized in breaststroke events.[1] She is a two-time Olympian (2004 and 2008) and competed in several World- and European Championships. She was member of SG Essen until 2005. From 2005 she competed as a member of Düsseldorf SC 1898 club in Düsseldorf, Germany under head coach Torsten Petsch.[2] She was the first woman to represent Montenegro at the Olympics.[3]

Marina Kuč
Personal information
Full nameMarina Kuč
National team Germany
 Serbia and Montenegro
 Montenegro
Born (1985-06-20) 20 June 1985
Essen, Germany,
Height1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)
Weight67 kg (148 lb)
Sport
SportSwimming
StrokesBreaststroke
ClubSG Essen / Düsseldorf SC 1808 (GER)
CoachTorsten Petsch (GER)

Kuc was several times German Junior Champ and German Championship medalist and competed for the german national team until she changed to compete for her parents native country Serbia and Montenegro at the European Championship in Madrid and the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. In the 100 m breaststroke, she placed twenty-second on the morning prelims. Swimming in heat three, Kuc stormed home with an easy triumph in a time of 1:11.27, holding off Turkey's Ilkay Dikmen by almost half the body length.[4][5] Three days later, in the 200 m breaststroke, Kuc qualified for the semi-finals with a time of 2:30,39. She finished her semifinal run with a time of 2:31.77.[6][7]

At the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, Kuc competed in the 200 m breaststroke as a member of the Montenegrin squad, since the nation became a newly independent state in 2006. In 2007, she reached a time of 2:32.59 from the World Championships in Melbourne, Australia to qualify for the 2008 Olympics.[8][9] She challenged seven other swimmers in heat two, including three-time Olympians Siow Yi Ting of Malaysia and Nicolette Teo of Singapore. She established a time of 2:31.24 to pick up a third seed by a 3.44-second deficit behind winner Siow. Kuc didn't advance in the semifinals, as she placed thirty-first overall in the prelims.[10]

References
  1. Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Marina Kuč". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
  2. "Schwimmen/Marina Kuc: Das große Kribbeln vor dem ersten WM-Start" [Swimming / Marina Kuc: The big tingling before the first World Cup start] (in German). WZ Newsline (Germany). 6 March 2007. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
  3. "First female competitors at the Olympics by country". Olympedia. Retrieved 14 June 2020.
  4. "Women's 100m Breaststroke Heat 3". Athens 2004. BBC Sport. 15 August 2004. Retrieved 31 January 2013.
  5. Thomas, Stephen (15 August 2004). "Women's 100 Breaststroke Prelims: Aussies Hanson and Jones Qualify One-Two". Swimming World Magazine. Archived from the original on 3 July 2006. Retrieved 19 April 2013.
  6. "Women's 200m Breaststroke Semifinal 2". Athens 2004. BBC Sport. 18 August 2004. Retrieved 31 January 2013.
  7. Thomas, Stephen (18 August 2004). "Amanda Beard Fastest Qualifier in 200 Breaststroke". Swimming World Magazine. Archived from the original on 3 December 2005. Retrieved 31 May 2013.
  8. "Olympic Cut Sheet – Women's 200m Breaststroke" (PDF). Swimming World Magazine. p. 72. Retrieved 10 April 2013.
  9. "2007 FINA World Championships (Melbourne, Australia) – Women's 200m Breaststroke Heats" (PDF). Omega Timing. Retrieved 11 February 2013.
  10. "Women's 200m Breaststroke Heat 2". Beijing 2008. NBC Olympics. Archived from the original on 21 August 2012. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
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