Claudia
Maria
Poll
Ahrens
holds
a
distinct
place
among
Costa
Ricans
,
as
the
only
Costa
Rican
to
ever
win
an
Olympic
gold
medal
.
As
a
short
-
distance
swimmer
,
she
also
has
won
more
Olympic
medals
than
any
other
Costa
Rican
.
She
____________________
(
attain
)
this
status
during
the
Atlanta
Olympic
Games
in
1996
,
winning
the
200
-
meter
freestyle
.
Later
,
at
the
2000
Sydney
Games
,
she
____________________
two
bronze
medals
.
Her
gold
____________________
(
be
)
not
only
the
first
for
a
Costa
Rican
,
but
for
any
person
from
Central
America
.
Poll
was
born
in
Nicaragua
on
December
21
,
1972
to
parents
who
had
emigrated
from
Germany
.
Her
family
____________________
(
move
)
to
Costa
Rica
when
she
____________________
(
be
)
very
young
after
an
earthquake
and
rising
political
tensions
.
Her
family
includes
her
older
sister
,
Silvia
,
also
an
Olympic
medal
-
winning
swimmer
.
Aside
from
swimming
,
Poll
____________________
(
graduate
)
from
university
with
a
degree
in
Business
Administration
in
1998
.
She
had
her
first
child
,
a
daughter
,
in
2007
,
just
a
year
after
setting
records
at
the
Central
American
and
Caribbean
Games
.
