Naoko Takahashi was born in May 6th, 1972 in Gifu, Japan. She is 1, 59 m. tall and weighs 43 kgs. In Sydney Olympics she won the gold medal in 2000 and one year later he ran the faster Marathon in history in Berlin, where she set a 2: 19' 46". One week later she lost the record by Catherine Ndereba of Kenya.

Personal Bests:   2: 19' 46" (Marathon), 31' 48" 23 (10000 m., 1996), 15' 21" 15 (5000 m., 1998)

Progression at Marathon:  19947: 2:31.32, 1998: 2:21.47, 2000: 2:22.19, 2001: 2:19.46

Career Highlights:
1998: Asian Champion (Marathon), World Championships, 13th place (5000 m.)
2000: Olympic Champion (Marathon)