Tiina Lillak

Tiina Lillak, 1983

Ilse Kristiina "Tiina" Lillak (born April 15, 1961 in Helsinki ) is a former Finnish athlete . She was the first world champion in javelin throw . With a height of 1.80 m, she had a competition weight of 73 kg.

At the age of 19, Tiina Lillak failed in the 1980 Olympic Games as fourteenth in qualification. In 1982 she set her first world record in her hometown of 72.40 m at the end of July, the first ever for a Finnish female thrower. At the European Championships in Athens in 1982 , she was fourth with 66.26 m. The European champion was the Greek Anna Verouli . Third-placed Greek Sofia Sakorafa set a new world record at the end of September with 74.20 m.

On June 13, 1983 Tiina Lillak took back the world record in Tampere with 74.76 m. On August 13, 1983, the javelin final of the first world championships for athletes took place in Helsinki . Before the last round, the British Fatima Whitbread led ahead of Tiina Lillak and Anna Verouli, fourth was again a British, namely Tessa Sanderson . With the penultimate litter of the competition, Tiina Lillak achieved a litter of 70.82 m, with which she took the lead. The Finnish audience already celebrated the first world title for Finland with Tiina Lillak, while Tessa Sanderson threw. But Sanderson was unable to put the competition's last attempt over the 60-meter mark.

At the 1984 Olympic Games , Tiina Lillak won the silver medal behind Sanderson and ahead of Whitbread with exactly 69.00 meters. 1986 at the European Championships Lillak threw 66.66 m in 4th place, she was almost 10 meters behind Fatima Whitbread. At the World Championships in 1987 Whitbread won again, Lillak was sixth with 66.82 m. In 1988 Lillak missed the Olympic final in fifteenth of the qualification . 1990 at the European Championships Lillak was ninth with 58.80 m, while her compatriot Päivi Alafrantti won.