Ruth Beitia facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Ruth Beitia

Personal information
Full name	Ruth Beitia Vila
Nationality	Spanish
Born	(1979-04-01) 1 April 1979 (age 46) Santander, Spain
Height	1.92 m (6 ft 3+1⁄2 in)
Weight	71 kg (157 lb)
Sport
Country	Spain
Sport	Athletics
Event(s)	High jump
Club	Atletismo Piélagos
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)	High jump: 2.02 m (2007)
Medal record Women's athletics Representing  Spain Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 1 0 1 World Championships 0 1 0 World Indoor Championships 0 2 2 European Championships 3 0 0 European Indoor Championships 1 4 1 Mediterranean Games 1 0 0 Olympic Games Gold 2016 Rio de Janeiro High jump Bronze 2012 London High jump World Championships Silver 2013 Moscow High jump World Indoor Championships Silver 2010 Doha High jump Silver 2016 Portland High jump Bronze 2006 Moscow High jump Bronze 2014 Sopot High jump European Championships Gold 2012 Helsinki High jump Gold 2014 Zürich High jump Gold 2016 Amsterdam High jump European Indoor Championships Gold 2013 Gothenburg High jump Silver 2005 Madrid High jump Silver 2009 Torino High jump Silver 2011 Paris High jump Silver 2017 Belgrade High jump Bronze 2007 Birmingham High jump Mediterranean Games Gold 2005 Almería High jump

Ruth Beitia Vila, born on April 1, 1979, is a famous Spanish athlete. She was an amazing high jumper. Ruth became the Olympic champion in high jump at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games. After her sports career, she also became a politician. She was a member of the Parliament of Cantabria.

Ruth Beitia's Athletic Journey

Ruth Beitia first broke the Spanish high jump record in 1998. She jumped 1.89 meters. Over time, she kept improving her record. On August 4, 2007, she set a new Spanish record of 2.02 meters. Ruth is the first and only Spanish woman to jump higher than two meters.

Early International Competitions

Ruth's first big international competition was in 2002. She competed at the European Athletics Championships in Munich. She finished 11th there. In 2003, she also placed 11th at the World Championships in Paris. At the 2004 Athens Olympics, she did not reach the finals.

In 2005, Ruth won a silver medal. This was at the European Indoor Championships in Madrid. However, she did not make the finals at the World Championships in Helsinki that year. In 2006, she earned a bronze medal. This was at the World Indoor Athletics Championships in Moscow.

Olympic Dreams and Comeback

In 2009, Ruth won another silver medal. This was at the European Indoor Championships in Turin. She placed fourth at the World Championships in Berlin. In 2012, she won a gold medal at the European Championships in Helsinki.

At the 2012 London Olympics, Ruth finished fourth. After this, she decided to retire from sports. However, she was disappointed not to win an Olympic medal. So, after a few months, she decided to come back to high jumping.

Her comeback was very successful. She won a gold medal at the 2013 European Indoor Championships. She then became European champion two more times. These wins were in 2014 in Zürich and 2016 in Amsterdam.

Olympic Gold Medalist

Finally, Ruth achieved her dream. She won the gold medal at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games. She cleared a height of 1.97 meters. This was a truly special moment in her career.

In 2017, Ruth finished 12th at the World Championships. She received an award for her great sportsmanship. She announced her retirement from competition in October 2017. This was due to a health issue called rheumatoid arthritis.

In 2021, Ruth received another Olympic medal. She was re-awarded the bronze medal from the 2012 London Olympics. This happened after another athlete was disqualified.

Ruth Beitia's Olympic Results

The Olympic rings, a symbol of the Games.

Olympic Games	Discipline	Place
2004 Athens	High jump	16
2008 Beijing	High jump	4
2012 London	High jump	3
2016 Rio de Janeiro	High jump	1

Ruth Beitia's Achievements

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Notes
Representing  Spain
1995	European Youth Olympic Days	Bath, United Kingdom	5th	1.80 m
1996	World Junior Championships	Sydney, Australia	16th (q)	1.79 m
1997	Mediterranean Games	Bari, Italy	9th	1.70 m
	European Junior Championships	Ljubljana, Slovenia	9th	1.82 m
1998	World Junior Championships	Annecy, France	8th	1.80 m
1999	European U23 Championships	Gothenburg, Sweden	11th	1.82 m
2000	Ibero-American Championships	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	4th	1.81 m
2001	World Indoor Championships	Lisbon, Portugal	7th	1.93 m
	European U23 Championships	Amsterdam, Netherlands	1st	1.87 m
	Mediterranean Games	Radès, Tunisia	4th	1.83 m
2002	European Championships	Munich, Germany	11th	1.85 m
2003	World Indoor Championships	Birmingham, United Kingdom	5th	1.96 m
	World Championships	Paris, France	11th	1.90 m
2004	World Indoor Championships	Budapest, Hungary	9th (q)	1.93 m
	Ibero-American Championships	Huelva, Spain	4th	1.88 m
	Olympic Games	Athens, Greece	16th (q)	1.89 m
2005	European Indoor Championships	Madrid, Spain	2nd	1.99 m
	World Athletics Final	Monte Carlo, Monaco	7th	1.89 m
	Mediterranean Games	Almería, Spain	1st	1.95 m
2006	World Indoor Championships	Moscow, Russia	3rd	1.98 m
	European Championships	Gothenburg, Sweden	9th	1.92 m
	World Athletics Final	Stuttgart, Germany	6th	1.90 m
2007	European Indoor Championships	Birmingham, United Kingdom	3rd	1.96 m
	World Championships	Osaka, Japan	6th	1.97 m
2008	World Indoor Championships	Valencia, Spain	4th	1.99 m
	Olympic Games	Beijing, China	4th	1.96 m
2009	European Indoor Championships	Torino, Italy	2nd	1.99 m
	World Championships	Berlin, Germany	4th	1.99 m
2010	World Indoor Championships	Doha, Qatar	2nd	1.98 m
	Ibero-American Championships	San Fernando, Spain	1st	1.89 m
	European Championships	Barcelona, Spain	6th	1.95 m
2011	European Indoor Championships	Paris, France	2nd	1.96 m
	World Championships	Daegu, South Korea	16th (q)	1.92 m
2012	World Indoor Championships	Istanbul, Turkey	6th	1.95 m
	European Championships	Helsinki, Finland	1st	1.97 m
	Olympic Games	London, United Kingdom	3rd	2.00 m
2013	European Indoor Championships	Gothenburg, Sweden	1st	1.99 m
	World Championships	Moscow, Russia	2nd	1.97 m
2014	World Indoor Championships	Sopot, Poland	3rd	2.00 m
	European Championships	Zürich, Switzerland	1st	2.01 m
2015	European Indoor Championships	Prague, Czech Republic	5th	1.94 m
	World Championships	Beijing, China	5th	1.99 m
	Diamond League		1st	details
2016	World Indoor Championships	Portland, United States	2nd	1.96 m
	European Championships	Amsterdam, Netherlands	1st	1.98 m
	Olympic Games	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	1st	1.97 m
	Diamond League		1st	details
2017	European Indoor Championships	Belgrade, Serbia	2nd	1.94 m
	World Championships	London, United Kingdom	12th	1.88 m

Ruth Beitia's Best Jumps

Ruth Beitia's Political Career

Beitia with Pablo Casado and other members of the People's Party in January 2019.

After her successful sports career, Ruth Beitia also became involved in politics.

Early Political Roles

In 2008, Ruth became the head of a local committee for the People's Party. She held this position until 2012.

Serving in Parliament

In 2011, she was elected to the Parliament of Cantabria. This is like a regional government assembly. She was a member of parliament, helping to make decisions for the region. During her first time in parliament, she was a key official. She led many important meetings.

In the 2015 election, she was re-elected to parliament. In September 2018, she joined the national leadership team of her party. She became the Secretary of Sport.

Candidate for President

In January 2019, Ruth was chosen to be the party's candidate for President of Cantabria. This is a very important leadership role. However, a few days later, Ruth decided to step down. She explained that she needed to leave politics for personal and family reasons.

See also

In Spanish: Ruth Beitia para niños