| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Diane Jones |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Born | March 7, 1951 Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |
| Sport | |
| Country | Canada |
| Sport | Women's pentathlon |
| Retired | 1983 |
Medal record | |
Diane Jones-Konihowski, CM (born March 7, 1951) [1] is a former Canadian pentathlete who was the 1978 Commonwealth Champion and won two gold medals at two Pan-American Games, as well as representing Canada at two Summer Olympics.
Jones-Konihowski was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, [1] and raised in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. She graduated from the College of Education at the University of Saskatchewan. [2] Diane took her first international medal at the 1969 Pacific Conference Games, a bronze in the high jump. She competed for Canada at the 1972 Summer Olympics, placing tenth [3] she took the bronze medal at the World Student Games in Moscow in 1973; and the 1976 Summer Olympics, placing sixth. [4] Considered to be a medal contender for the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, a third appearance at the Olympics failed to materialize as Canada was one of the countries that chose to boycott the games due to the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan. Although Jones-Konihowski considered competing as an individual, she ultimately decided against it. [5] She won a gold medal in the pentathlon at the 1975 and 1979 Pan Am Games and 1978 Commonwealth Games. She was also the winner of the pentathlon at the Liberty Bell Classic (alternate Olympic competition) in 1980. [6] Two weeks after the Moscow Olympics, Diane competed in the pentathlon in Germany; she won the gold beating all the Olympic Medallist. [7] She retired from competition in 1983. [8] She was Chef de Mission of the 2000 Canadian Olympic Team in Sydney, Australia.
In 1978, she was made a Member of the Order of Canada. [9] She was inducted into the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame in 1980, the Canadian Olympic Sports Hall of Fame in 1996, and the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame and Museum in 2002. She was also awarded the Bobbie Rosenfeld Award and the Velma Springstead Trophy. In 2002, she was awarded an honorary degree from the University of Saskatchewan. In 2020/21, she was awarded the Order of Sport, marking her induction into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame. [10]
In 1977, she married John Konihowski, a professional football player for the Edmonton Eskimos and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
She lives in Calgary, Alberta, where she is the President and partner of Premiere Executive Suites. In 2005, she was elected to the board of directors of the Canadian Olympic Committee. [11]
The 1976 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad and commonly known as Montreal 1976, were an international multi-sport event held from July 17 to August 1, 1976, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Montreal was awarded the rights to the 1976 Games at the 69th IOC Session in Amsterdam on May 12, 1970, over the bids of Moscow and Los Angeles. It was the first and, so far, only Summer Olympic Games to be held in Canada. Toronto hosted the 1976 Summer Paralympics the same year as the Montreal Olympics, which still remains the only Summer Paralympics to be held in Canada. Calgary and Vancouver later hosted the Winter Olympic Games in 1988 and 2010, respectively.
The 1980 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad and commonly known as Moscow 1980, were an international multi-sport event held from 19 July to 3 August 1980 in Moscow, Soviet Union, in present-day Russia. The games were the first to be staged in an Eastern Bloc country, as well as the first Olympic Games and only Summer Olympics to be held in a Slavic language-speaking country. They were also the only Summer Olympic Games to be held in a self-proclaimed communist country until the 2008 Summer Olympics held in China. These were the final Olympic Games under the IOC Presidency of Michael Morris, 3rd Baron Killanin before he was succeeded by Juan Antonio Samaranch, a Spaniard, shortly afterwards.
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Canada has sent athletes to every Winter Olympic Games and every Summer Olympic Games since its debut at the 1900 games with the exception of the 1980 Summer Olympics, which it boycotted along with the USA and other countries. Canada has won at least one medal at every Olympics in which it has competed. The Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) is the National Olympic Committee for Canada.
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| Pentathlon | |
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| Heptathlon |
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| Pentathlon (1970–1978) |
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| Heptathlon (1982–present) |
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