Elizabeta Karabolli, the first red and black pistol champion of Europe!

Elizabeta Karabolli
Without a doubt, the name of this athlete is written in capital letters in the stars of the “Hall of Fame” Albanian sports. It is one of our first and most heard champions, and not only in Albania.
At a young age, when she was still 14 years old, she took a pistol in her hand, perhaps she would not have dared that seven years later she would be declared the European Champion, becoming for Albania “Merited Master of Sports” and ” International Master”.

I.
Born in Tirana on February 13, 1958. She completed the Faculty of Economics and graduated in the finance department. From the time when she was a student, Karabolli attended shooting sports, a member of the K.S Partizani club.

The daughter of a model army officer like Tare Karabolli, originally from Kallarati in Vlora, Elisabeta would create the first relationship with the pistol, a “love at first sight”. The first tests at the shooting range were impressive, making her enroll in the “Partizani” sports club, a team with a great tradition not only in this sport.

Elizabeth has always been characterized by seriousness, dedication and perseverance in every training session, with a perfect line marking and a beautiful shot.

At the age of 17, she was declared Champion of Albania in the 30+30 standard pistol shooting competition, a discipline that she would make her own, even in the international arena, being equipped with a precise mark of genius. The results give the fruits of a voluminous work and the opportunity to become part of the Albanian representative shooting team.

In 1977 she reached the peak of her career. This year coincides with the 15th European Shooting Championship that took place in Rome. And here, Elizabeta Karabolli, in the 30+30 pistol competition, then only 19 years old, ranks third with 584 points, alongside the 48 best shooters, representing 24 countries of the continent.

Elizabeta, while holding the bronze medal around her neck, takes a look at the first place on the podium won by the Soviet Galina Korzun. Maybe in those moments, she thought that soon the first place will be hers.

The Final Table Standings :
1-Galina Korzun (URS) 592 Points
2-Lamara Beidina (URS) 585
3-Elizabeta Karabolli (ALB) 584

A year later, 1978, in the 16th European Championship held in Hameelina, Finland, she collected 586 points, but remained only 2 points away from the first place.
The Albanian shooter defeated the reigning champion Korzun, but failed to win against the other Soviet athlete, Asrian. However, in the rapid shooting series, the Albanian Karabolli surprises everyone with her shots. Silver medalist and runner-up of Europe.

Final Standings:
1-Larisa Asrian (URS) 588 Points
2-Elizabeta Karabolli 586
3-Galina Korzun (URS) 584

We are now in 1979.
It`s the 17th European Championship held in Frankfurt am Main (Germany). The 21-year-old shooter, E. Karabolli of Albania, with the high score of 587 points, wins first place and the gold medal. The champion from Albania raises the Flag and the sounds of the National Anthem are heard in Europe.

Oh, what national pride!

She left behind two very strong Soviet rivals, representatives of one of the giants of this sport in the world.

Final ranking this time would read like this:
1-Elizabeta Karabolli (ALB) 587 Points
2-Galina Korzun (URS) 584 / 149
3-Zinaida Simonian (URS) 584 / 147 points

In the history of the Albanian Shooting sport, she is the first Albanian champion in Europe. In this championship, our women’s representative team was composed of Elizabeta Karabolli, Margarita Cingu and Diana Mata, who achieved a total of 1733 points (a new national record with 21 more points) being declared the runner-up of Europe, and placing around the neck silver medals.

A year later, in 1980, Elizabeta with the title “Merited Master of Sports”, in the Albanian National Championship with the score of 593 points, will set a new national record, even surpassing the world record of the time. The details and information show us that Elizabeta once again broke the world record during the competitions for the National Championship held in Albania.

In 1980, at the European Championship, the women’s representative team, which consisted of Elisabeta Karabolli, Margarita Cingu and Diana Mata, ranked fourth, leaving behind the teams of 19 countries.

E. Karabolli, as a shooter of the “Partizani” Sports Club, was one of the first athletes in terms of Albanian pride in sports, and undoubtedly the only one who had reached the top of the shooting sport with full merit.

2.
And her successes continued with the 12th Mediterranean Games of 1993 organized in Languedoc-Roussillon in France from June 16-27 and opened by the former president of France, François Mitterrand.

E. Karabolli had won the silver medal in the fire pistol and the air pistol, as the only medals won by Albania in these games.

After that, Elizabeta and her family emigrated to America. Without any problem to gain citizenship, she has been competing in the American shooting championship since 1997.

In 2007, Karabolli won the silver medal, while in 2008, in her permanent participation in this championship, the Albanian became the American Champion in pistol shooting disciplines, leaving behind the four-time participant in the Olympic Games and the medal winner of gold at the Pan American Games, Elizabeth Callahan.

Elizabeta Karabolli has gone down in history as the first Albanian shooter to win gold medals and the title of European champion.

Meanwhile, other shots followed her path:
Ermira Dingu in the 1×60 rifle exercise with 594 points receives the gold medal and is declared European champion (Spain, 1980).

Emanuela Kola in the pistol exercise 30+30 for young women receives the gold medal. Champion of Europe (Romania, 1983).

24 years later, it is Lindita Kodra who won the gold medal in the sport pistol with 583 points and was declared European Champion (Granada/Spain, 2007).

By Pjerin Bj
The exclusivity on this page is dated October 9, 2024

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Sports Vision + / Champions Hour in activity since 2013 Reference: In the construction of this article, a selection of online information and the personal collection of the newspaper “Sporti Popullor” were used.

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