Moe, Karen (1952—)
Moe, Karen (1952—)
American swimmer. Name variations: Karen Patricia Moe. Born in Santa Clara, California, on January 22, 1952.
Karen Moe was born in Santa Clara, California, in the early 1950s. Always an avid swimmer, she began training in earnest when the women's Olympic swimming program expanded for the 1968 Games. At the 1972 Olympics in Munich, Moe became the first American woman to win a gold medal in the 200-meter butterfly, with a time of 2:15:57. (Americans Lynn Ann Colella and Ellie Daniel won the silver and bronze medals in the same event.) Moe returned to the Olympics in Montreal in 1976, and although she improved her time in the 200-meter butterfly to 2:12:90, other competitors had also improved, and she finished fourth. Moe retired from competitive swimming following the 1976 Games.
Grant Eldridge , freelance writer, Pontiac, Michigan