Rita Kőbán

The native form of this personal name is Kőbán Rita. This article uses Western name order when mentioning individuals.

Rita Kőbán (born 10 April 1965) is a Hungarian canoe sprinter. She competed at the 1988, 1992, 1996 and 2000 Olympics and won six medals, with two golds (1992: K-4 500 m, 1996: K-1 500 m), three silvers (1988: K-4 500 m, 1992: K-1 500 m, 2000: K-4 500 m), and one bronze (1992: K-2 500 m).

Rita Kőbán

Personal information
Born	10 April 1965 (1965-04-10) (age 60) Budapest, Hungary
Height	174 cm (5 ft 9 in)
Weight	69 kg (152 lb)
Sport
Sport	Canoe sprint
Club	Csepel SC, Budapest Újpesti TE, Budapest
Medal record Representing  Hungary Olympic Games 1992 Barcelona K-4 500 m 1996 Atlanta K-1 500 m 1988 Seoul K-4 500 m 1992 Barcelona K-1 500 m 2000 Sydney K-4 500 m 1992 Barcelona K-2 500 m World Championships 1986 Montreal K-4 500 m 1994 Mexico City K-1 200 m 1994 Mexico City K-2 200 m 1994 Mexico City K-4 200 m 1995 Duisburg K-1 200 m 1995 Duisburg K-1 500 m 1998 Szeged K-4 200 m 1999 Milan K-4 200 m 1999 Milan K-4 500 m 1985 Mechelen K-2 500 m 1987 Duisburg K-4 500 m 1989 Plovdiv K-4 500 m 1990 Poznań K-4 500 m 1991 Paris K-1 500 m 1991 Paris K-4 500 m 1993 Copenhagen K-1 5000 m 1994 Mexico City K-1 500 m 1994 Mexico City K-4 500 m 1998 Szeged K-2 200 m 1985 Mechelen K-4 500 m 1993 Copenhagen K-4 500 m 1995 Duisburg K-4 500 m 1998 Szeged K-2 500 m 1999 Milan K-1 200 m 1999 Milan K-1 500 m 1999 Milan K-2 200 m

Kőbán has also been successful in the ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships collecting 26 medals. This includes nine golds (K-1 200 m: 1994, 1995; K-1 500 m: 1995, K-2 200 m: 1994, K-4 200 m: 1994, 1998, 1999; K-4 500 m: 1986, 1999), ten silvers (K-1 500 m: 1991, 1994; K-1 5000 m: 1993, K-2 200 m: 1998, K-2 500 m: 1985, K-4 500 m: 1987, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1994), and seven bronzes (K-1 200 m: 1999, K-1 500 m: 1999, K-2 200 m: 1999, K-2 500 m: 1998, K-4 500 m: 1985, 1993, 1995).

She was elected Hungarian Sportswoman of the Year in 1994 and 1995, ending the string of six consecutive titles by Krisztina Egerszegi. After retiring from competitions, she briefly worked as a TV presenter.

Kőbán has been a vegetarian since 1991.^[1]

Awards

• Masterly youth athlete: 1982, 1983
• Hungarian kayaker of the Year (7): 1984, 1987, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1995, 1996
• Work Order of Merit of Hungarian People's Republic – Silver Cross (1988)
• Csepel SC – Athlete of Year (1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996)
• Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary – Officer's Cross (1992)
• Member of the Hungarian team of year (with Erika Mészáros, Éva Dónusz, Kinga Czigány): 1992
• Perpetual champion of Csepel SC (1994)
• Hungarian Sportwoman of the Year (2) – votes of sports journalists: 1994, 1995
• MOB Golden ring (1995)
• Honorary Citizen of Csepel (1996)
• Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary – Commander's Cross (1996)
• Hungarian Heritage Award (1999)
• Príma Primissima award (2016)