Elena Rigas
Denmark
| Sport | Speed Skating | |
| FederationID | SSDEN22901199601 | |
| NOC | Denmark | |
| Born | 29 Jan 1996
in  Albertslund | |
| Gender | Women |
| Residence | Copenhagen, DEN | |
| Higher education | International Relations - Roskilde University: Denmark | |
| Occupation | Athlete, Student | |
| Languages | Danish, English, Greek |
| Personal Bests | Event | Record | Date | Location | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Personal Bests | ||||||
| Event | Record | Date | Location | |||
| 500m | 41.80 | 30 Sep 2016 |  Inzell |
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| 1000m | 1:21.71 | 21 Oct 2016 | Inzell |
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| 1500m | 2:02.48 | 09 Dec 2017 |  Salt Lake City, UT |
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| 3000m | 4:11.69 | 01 Dec 2017 |  Calgary |
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General Interest
General Interest
| Other sports | She has represented Denmark in inline skating. She was ranked seventh in the road 10,000m points race at the 2016 European Championships in Heerde, Netherlands. (SportsDeskOnline, 29 Nov 2016) | |
| Famous relatives | Her mother Karin Rigas has served as chairperson of the Danish Skate Union [DSU], while her cousin Jasper Carlson has worked as the Danish national speed skating coach. (elenarigas.com, 24 Nov 2016; danskate.dk, 2016) |
Sport Specific Information
Sport Specific Information
| Reason for choosing this sport | "My friends changed from inline skating to speed skating during the winter and so did I." |
General Interest
General Interest
| Ambitions | To compete at the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing. (elenarigas.com, 2018) |
Sport Specific Information
Sport Specific Information
| Name of coach | Jesper Carlson [national, cousin], DEN | |
| When and where did you begin this sport? | She first tried inline skating at age five. She began speed skating during the 2011/12 season. |
General Interest
General Interest
| Sporting philosophy / motto | "Go fast, have fun." (Athlete, 16 Nov 2018) | |
| Other information | FURTHER EDUCATION She has studied economics and corporate communications at Copenhagen Business School [CBS] in Denmark. (Facebook profile, 21 Apr 2017) HERITAGE Her mother is Danish and her father was born in Greece. (elenarigas.com, 2018) |
|
| Memorable sporting achievement | Placing second in the mass start at the 2017 World Cup event in Calgary, AB, Canada, and competing at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang. (Athlete, 16 Nov 2018) | |
| Most influential person in career | Coach Jesper Carlson, and her grandmother Leni. (Athlete, 16 Nov 2018) | |
| Hero / Idol | Her grandfather Borge Scharfe. (Athlete, 16 Nov 2018) | |
| Awards and honours | She was Denmark's flag bearer at the opening ceremony of the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang. (standard.co.uk, 09 Feb 2018) |
Social Media
Social Media
| www.elenarigas.com/ | www.facebook.com/elenamrigas | twitter.com/eleni_rigass |
Sport Specific Information
Sport Specific Information
| Club / Team | Hurtigloberforeningen af 72 [HLF72]: Copenhagen, DEN |
| Championships results | Year | Competition | Event | Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Championships results
|
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| 2018/2019 | World Single Distances Championships | Mass Start 16 Laps | 6 | |||
| 2016/2017 | World Single Distances Championships | Mass Start 16 Laps | 8 | |||
| 2018 | Olympic Games | Mass Start 16 Laps | 17 | |||
| World Cups | Year | Competition | Event | Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
World Cups
|
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| 2017/2018 | Calgary, AB | Mass Start 16 Laps | 2 | |||
| 2017/2018 | World Cup Classification | Mass Start 16 Laps | 6 | |||
| 2018/2019 | World Cup Classification | Mass Start 16 Laps | 10 | |||
| 2016/2017 | World Cup Classification | Mass Start 16 Laps | 16 | |||
| 2014/2015 | World Cup Classification | Mass Start 16 Laps | 23 | |||
| 2017/2018 | World Cup Classification | Overall | 27 | |||
| 2018/2019 | World Cup Classification | 3000/5000m | 50 | |||