Petra Felke facts for kids
Felke in 1984
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| Birth name | Petra Felke | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nationality | German | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 30 July 1959 (age 65) Saalfeld, East Germany |
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| Height | 1.72 m | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 74 kg | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country |  East Germany Germany |
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| Sport | Track and field | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Event(s) | Javelin throw | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | SC Motor Jena | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal best(s) | WR 80.00 m (1988) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Petra Meier (born Petra Felke on 30 July 1959) is a retired German track and field athlete. She was amazing at the javelin throw. Petra represented East Germany and won a gold medal at the Olympics in 1988.
She broke the world record four times. This happened between 1985 and 1988. Petra is the only woman to throw a javelin 80 meters or more. Her world record throw was exactly 80.00 meters. This record stood from 1988 until 1999. In 1999, a new javelin design was introduced. Petra also won the javelin title at the 1989 IAAF World Cup. She earned silver medals at the World Championships in 1987 and 1991.
Contents
Petra Meier's Amazing Career
Petra Felke was born in Saalfeld, East Germany. She trained with another great athlete, Ruth Fuchs, at SC Motor Jena. Petra won a silver medal in javelin at the 1977 European Junior Championships. She then became the top javelin thrower in her country.
Early Competitions and National Success
Petra finished third at the GDR Championships in 1978 and 1981. She then placed second in 1982 and 1983. After that, she won six national titles in a row, starting in 1984. She competed at the 1983 World Championships in Helsinki, finishing ninth.
However, she could not compete at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. This was because her country joined a boycott of the games. Just ten days after the 1984 Olympic javelin final, Petra won the Friendship Games title. Her winning throw was 73.30 meters.
Breaking World Records
Petra broke her first world record on 4 June 1985. She actually broke it twice on the same day! Her throws were 75.26 meters and then 75.40 meters. She ended 1985 by finishing second at the World Cup in Canberra.
A year later, at the 1986 European Championships, she threw 72.52 meters. This earned her a silver medal. Great Britain's Fatima Whitbread won the gold. Petra set her third world record on 29 July 1987, with a throw of 78.90 meters. But at the World Championships in Rome, she again finished second to Whitbread.
Olympic Gold and Final Years
On 9 September 1988, Petra Felke broke the world record for the fourth time. She became the first woman to throw the javelin over 80 meters! Her record throw was exactly 80.00 meters. Two weeks later, she won the gold medal at the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Her winning throw was 74.68 meters. Whitbread won silver, and her teammate Beate Koch won bronze.
Petra continued her success by winning the 1989 World Cup title. She also earned a bronze medal at the 1990 European Championships. In 1991, she competed for a unified Germany as Petra Meier. She won silver at the World Championships in Tokyo. Her throw was 68.68 meters.
Petra finished her international career at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. She placed seventh with a throw of 59.02 meters. In 1999, the javelin design was changed, and all previous records were reset. This means Petra Meier's incredible 80.00-meter throw will always be remembered as a historic achievement.
International Achievements
Petra Meier competed in many important events. Here are some of her top results:
- 1977 European Athletics Junior Championships: Silver medal
- 1981 Universiade: Gold medal
- 1984 Friendship Games: Gold medal
- 1985 World Cup: Silver medal
- 1986 Goodwill Games: Gold medal
- 1986 European Championships: Silver medal
- 1986 Grand Prix Final: Gold medal
- 1987 World Championships: Silver medal
- 1988 Olympic Games: Gold medal
- 1989 World Cup: Gold medal
- 1990 European Championships: Bronze medal
- 1990 Grand Prix Final: Gold medal
- 1991 World Championships: Silver medal
See also
In Spanish: Petra Felke para niños
