Athlete profile: Monique Garbrecht

Posted: Tue February 3, 1998 at 5:00 PM ET

Athlete notes

Garbrecht took a year off in 1995-96 so that she could set her sights on her professional studies -- learning the trade of advertising sales...from March 1995 until November 1996, Garbrecht did not compete in a single competitive speed skating Events...instead, she worked in an office off of Berlin's trendy Ku-Damm street...Garbrecht won't need to sell the public on her skating talent...in 1992, Garbrecht won a bronze medal in the 1,000 meters at the Albertville Games...paired on the oval with Chinese medal-favorite Ye Qiaobo (YAY chah-BOH), who won silver, Garbrecht skated a clean race to finish just two-tenths of a second behind winner Bonnie Blair...after two solid finishes in Lillehammer, though no medals, Garbrecht took her year off...she returned to the competitive oval on November 10, 1996..."The start is always the worst," she said after her comeback. "I was unbelievably happy to get that first race behind me. It is definitely a weird feeling, after the long break to be fully back. Training is well and good, but the competitions are a totally different topic"...Garbrecht says she trained very hard during the summer before her comeback, spending time on the oval with reputed Berlin coach Joachim Franke...Garbrecht looks to be very competitive in Nagano after a good early 1997-98 winter performance, including one podium in the 500 meters..."I think her form is going upwards, she is not quite as strong as she used to be, but she can be a surprise," says one German journalist who covers speed skating..."My biggest goals are the '98 Olympic Games in Nagano and the Sprint World Championships before in the Hohenschönhausen Hall," she said after her return to the competitive scene. "Medals should be in there somewhere"...the World Sprints take place January 24/25 in Berlin prior to Nagano...Garbrecht has made it clear she hopes to podium at both events...Monique has talked of starting to compete in the 1,500 meters this season in her older age, but for now she appears to be sticking with the sprints...trained originally as a physical therapist, Monique decided to take business courses and study advertising marketing back in 1993...she successfully completed her degree in the fall of 1996...she has talked of getting into the cosmetic industry and will be more prepared with her business background...currently she works for a marketing company called "X-phone Marketing GmbH," which has helped sponsor and support her while she is still skating...Monique started skating competitively in 1980...she has two younger brothers...she speaks little English...