Maria Akraka
Encyclopedia
Maria Helene Henriksson Akraka (born 7 July 1966 in London
, Greater London
) is a Swedish
entrepreneur
, television host and former athlete.
Akraka became interested in running after seeing Valerie Brisco-Hooks
winning three gold medals as an Olympic
track and field
athlete at the 1984 Olympics
. She jokingly admits that she was equally fascinated by Brisco-Hooks' hair style as her sporting accomplishment. In her early 2000s she traveled to Nigeria
, were her father was coaching the national Nigerian track and field
athlete team in order to train with some of the best sprinters in the world.
She has competed in four European Championship
s and three World Championship
s and in the 1992 Olympic Games
in the distance 1500 metres and in 800 metres running. She retired in 2000.
jockeys. She also worked for TV4 covering horse racing. In 2006 she started working for SVT
, hosting extreme sports game show Megadrom and also covered various sports competitions such as the Olympic Games
and DN Galan
.
Today she works for sporting goods retailer Intersport as an adviser and is the founder and CEO of Sportcore, a career agency for former professioanl athlets.
During the summer of 2010, she was one of several hosts of legendary radio program Sommar
.
Akraka and her husband bought a estate with an equestrian
training stable in 2009. She now spends much of her time training race horses.
and they have two children.
She was born in London to a Swedish mother and a Nigerian father. The family moved to Sweden but her father never took to Sweden and headed back to Nigeria. She was raised by her mom in Rågsved
outside Stockholm. Her father is a former track and field
athlete who competed in the 1960 Olympic Games
in Rome
. She has a twin brother.
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Greater London
Greater London
Greater London is the top-level administrative division of England covering London. It was created in 1965 and spans the City of London, including Middle Temple and Inner Temple, and the 32 London boroughs. This territory is coterminate with the London Government Office Region and the London...
) is a Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
, television host and former athlete.
Akraka became interested in running after seeing Valerie Brisco-Hooks
Valerie Brisco-Hooks
Valerie Ann Brisco-Hooks won three gold medals as an Olympic track and field athlete at the 1984 Olympics at Los Angeles, California, making her the first Olympian to win gold medals in both the 200- and 400-meter races at a single Olympics. She also won a gold medal for the 4x400 m...
winning three gold medals as an Olympic
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
track and field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
athlete at the 1984 Olympics
1984 Summer Olympics
The 1984 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Los Angeles, California, United States in 1984...
. She jokingly admits that she was equally fascinated by Brisco-Hooks' hair style as her sporting accomplishment. In her early 2000s she traveled to Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
, were her father was coaching the national Nigerian track and field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
athlete team in order to train with some of the best sprinters in the world.
She has competed in four European Championship
European Championships in Athletics
The European Athletics Championships is an event organized by the European Athletic Association. It is organised every four years, the same year as the Commonwealth Games and between the Summer Olympic Games cycle. After the 2010 Championships in Barcelona, the European Championships will take...
s and three World Championship
IAAF World Championships in Athletics
The World Championships in Athletics is an event organized by the International Association of Athletics Federations . Originally, it was organised every four years, but this changed in 1991, and it has since been organised biennially.-History:...
s and in the 1992 Olympic Games
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
in the distance 1500 metres and in 800 metres running. She retired in 2000.
Career after sport
Akraka worked previously as a host of betting company ATG's channel, Channel 75, where she interviewed Horse racingHorse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...
jockeys. She also worked for TV4 covering horse racing. In 2006 she started working for SVT
Sveriges Television
Sveriges Television AB , Sweden's Television, is a national television broadcaster based in Sweden, funded by a compulsory fee to be paid by all television owners...
, hosting extreme sports game show Megadrom and also covered various sports competitions such as the Olympic Games
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
and DN Galan
DN Galan
-External links:**...
.
Today she works for sporting goods retailer Intersport as an adviser and is the founder and CEO of Sportcore, a career agency for former professioanl athlets.
During the summer of 2010, she was one of several hosts of legendary radio program Sommar
Sommar (radio program)
Sommar is one of the most popular Swedish radio programs ever. It has been broadcast every summer on P1 since 28 June 1959. Before 1993 it aired in P3...
.
Akraka and her husband bought a estate with an equestrian
Equestrianism
Equestrianism more often known as riding, horseback riding or horse riding refers to the skill of riding, driving, or vaulting with horses...
training stable in 2009. She now spends much of her time training race horses.
Personal life
Akraka is married to former triple jumper Tord HenrikssonTord Henriksson
Tord Erik Stefan Henriksson is a retired Swedish triple jumper, best known for his bronze medal at the 1991 World Indoor Championships. His personal best was 17.21 metres, achieved in July 1993 in Bad Cannstatt. He is married to middle-distance runner Maria Akraka.-Achievements:-External links:*...
and they have two children.
She was born in London to a Swedish mother and a Nigerian father. The family moved to Sweden but her father never took to Sweden and headed back to Nigeria. She was raised by her mom in Rågsved
Rågsved
Rågsved is a working-class suburb in the south of Stockholm, Sweden. It was built in the 1950–1970s and has had big problems with unemployment, criminality and drug abuse...
outside Stockholm. Her father is a former track and field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
athlete who competed in the 1960 Olympic Games
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
. She has a twin brother.