Arna Sigríður Albertsdóttir
Arna at the German championships and Europe Cup in 2016
Personal information
NationalityIcelandic
Born (1990-06-08) 8 June 1990
Ísafjörður, Iceland
Years active2014–present
Sport
CountryIceland
SportHandcyling

Arna Sigríður Albertsdóttir (born 8 June 1990) is an Icelandic handcyclist.[1] Formerly a multi-sport athlete, she took up handcycling after being paralyzed in a skiing accident in 2006.[2] In 2015, she became the first Icelandic athlete to compete in the UCI World Championships[3] and in 2021, she became the first Icelander to participate in handcycling at the Paralympics.[4]

Biography

Early life

Arna was born and raised in Ísafjörður, Iceland. In her youth, she trained football, swimming and skiing.[5] During the summer of 2006, she played for BÍ/Bolungarvík's senior football team in the second-tier 1. deild kvenna.

Skiing accident

On 30 December 2006, while in a skiing training camp in Geilo, Norway, Arna landed off the track and crashed into a tree, fracturing her spine and paralyzing her below the waist.[6][7][8]

Handcycling

A few years after the accident she moved to Reykjavík and started training under the guidelines of trainer Fannar Karvel.[9] Arna first competed in handcycling in the autumn of 2014.[9] In 2015 she became the first cyclist to represent Iceland at the UCI Para-cycling Road World Championships.[3] On 20 March 2016, she finished first in road race event at a European Handcycling Federation's competition in Abu Dhabi while coming in second in the time trial event.[10]

In August and September 2021, she competed at the 2020 Summer Paralympics in Tokyo, Japan, becoming the first Icelander to compete in handcycling at the Paralympics.[11][12][13] In the time trial event on 31 August, she finished 11th.[14] In the road race event on 1 September, Arna finished 15th.[15]

Photos

References

  1. ↑ Orri Freyr Rúnarsson (8 November 2020). "Heldur að maður sé ósigrandi þegar maður er 16 ára". RÚV (in Icelandic). Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  2. ↑ Ásta Eir Árnadóttir (29 June 2019). "Vill verða ein af þeim bestu". Fréttablaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  3. 1 2 "Arna Albertsdottir - Focused on 2020 for Iceland". Union Cycliste Internationale. 17 July 2018. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  4. ↑ Orri Freyr Rúnarsson (26 August 2021). "Ég ætla ekki að láta neinn ná mér". RÚV (in Icelandic). Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  5. ↑ Kristjana Björg Guðbrandsdóttir (7 April 2018). "Ótrúlegt hvað lífið býður upp á". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  6. ↑ "Arna Sigríður valin Vestfirðingur ársins". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). 10 January 2008. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  7. ↑ Signý Gunnarsdóttir (30 December 2012). "Hef það fínt en þetta er samt hellings vesen". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). pp. 22–23. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
  8. ↑ Berglind Häsler (25 November 2007). "Margir í verr sporum en ég". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). pp. 28, 37. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
  9. 1 2 "Tekur tíma, þolinmæði og þrjósku". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 29 July 2018. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  10. ↑ Gunnþóra Gunnarsdóttir (24 March 2016). "Vann Evrópukeppni í handahjólreiðum". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  11. ↑ Hjörtur Leó Guðjónsson (8 July 2021). "Arna Sigríður sjötti keppandi Íslands í Tókýó". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  12. ↑ Helga Margrét Höskuldsdóttir (8 July 2021). "Arna Sigríður verður sjötti keppandi Íslands í Tókýó". RÚV (in Icelandic). Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  13. ↑ Gunnar Egill Daníelsson (21 August 2021). "Sú elsta en efnilegasta í hópnum". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  14. ↑ Kristjana Arnarsdóttir (31 August 2021). "Arna Sigríður ellefta í tímatökunni". RÚV (in Icelandic). Retrieved 31 August 2021.
  15. ↑ Kristjana Arnarsdóttir (1 September 2021). "Mér var sagt að ég ætti ekki að vera lifandi". RÚV (in Icelandic). Retrieved 1 September 2021.
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