Maria Cioncan (19 June 1977 – 21 January 2007) was a middle-distance runner from Romania, best known for winning a bronze medal in the 1500 metres event at the 2004 Summer Olympics.
Life Born in Maieru, she set personal bests in both 800 and 1500 metres during the games. Her 2005 season was cut short, and her only notable competition appearance was at the SPAR European Cup in Firenze, Italy where she won the 800 (2:00.88) and placed second in the 1500 (4:07.39). Cioncan's last competition on the top international level was the 2006 World Indoor Championships, where she failed to progress past the first heat of the 800m. Earlier that indoor season she ran an indoor personal best of 2:01.70.
On 21 January 2007 Cioncan died in a car accident near Pleven, Bulgaria. She was returning from a training camp in Greece when her vehicle flipped over and struck a tree, killing her instantly. The cause of the accident was a double blowout in the right front tire, the car not going more than 90 km/h.
Achievements Representing 1999European U23 ChampionshipsGothenburg, Sweden –800 mDNF7th1500 m4:14.002001World Indoor ChampionshipsLisbon, Portugal16th (h)1500 m4:17.472002European Indoor ChampionshipsVienna, Austria11th3000 m9:08.072003World Indoor ChampionshipsBirmingham, United Kingdom16th (h)1500 m4:14.52World ChampionshipsParis, France9th (sf)800 m2:00.729th1500 m4:02.802004Olympic GamesAthens, Greece7th800 m1:59.62 3rd1500 m3:58.39World Athletics FinalMonte Carlo, Monaco8th800 m2:04.5510th1500 m4:08.092006World Indoor ChampionshipsMoscow, Russia16th (h)800 m2:05.17
Personal bests 800 metres - 1:59.44 min (2004) 1500 metres - 3:58.39 min (2004) 3000 metres - 8:57.71 min (2002)
External links
http://www.focus-fen.net/index.php?id=n103809