Karen Moe-Thornton
Biographical information
| Roles | Competed in Olympic Games |
|---|---|
| Sex | Female |
| Full name | Karen Patricia•Moe-Thornton (-Humphreys) |
| Used name | Karen•Moe-Thornton |
| Born | 22 January 1953 in Del Monte (PHI) |
| Measurements | 165 cm / 56 kg |
| Affiliations | California Golden Bears, Berkeley (USA) |
| NOC |  United States |
| Medals | OG |
| Gold | 1 |
| Silver | 0 |
| Bronze | 0 |
| Total | 1 |
Biography
Born in the Philippines but educated at Santa Clara High School and UCLA, Karen Moe set her fourth and final 200m butterfly world record in winning the Olympic title in München. She also competed in the 100m backstroke at the 1972 Olympics, finishing fourth. After marrying Mike Thornton, she made a comeback in 1976 and again made the Olympic team, finishing fourth in the 200m butterfly at Montréal, but with a new American record. Mrs. Thornton served as head coach of the women’s swim team at Cal/Berkeley after her retirement from competition. After stepping down as coach she worked in sports administration at Cal for several years.
Results
| Games | Discipline (Sport) / Event | NOC / Team | Pos | Medal | As | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1972 Summer Olympics | Swimming (Aquatics) | USA |
Karen Moe | |||
| 100 metres Backstroke, Women (Olympic) | 4 | |||||
| 200 metres Butterfly, Women (Olympic) | 1 | Gold | ||||
| 1976 Summer Olympics | Swimming (Aquatics) | USA |
Karen Moe-Thornton | |||
| 200 metres Butterfly, Women (Olympic) | 4 |
Special Notes
- Listed in Olympians Who Set a World Record in Long Course Swimming (200 m butterfly – 11 July 1970 - 22 August 1970, 7 August 1971 - 28 August 1971, and 6 August 1972 - 8 September 1973: 2:20.7 (11 July 1970; Santa Clara, USA), 2:18.6 (7 August 1971; Santa Clara, USA), 2:16.62 (6 August 1972; Chicago, USA), 2:15.57 (4 September 1972; München, FRG))