Tamara Rylova facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Tamara Rylova

Personal information
Birth name	Tamara Nikolayevna Rylova
Born	(1931-10-01)1 October 1931 Vologda, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Died	1 February 2021(2021-02-01) (aged 89)
Height	1.63 m
Weight	66 kg
Sport
Country	Soviet Union
Sport	Speed skating
Medal record Women's speed skating Representing  Soviet Union Olympic Games Bronze 1960 Squaw Valley 1,000 m World Championships Gold 1959 Sverdlovsk Allround Silver 1955 Kuopio Allround Silver 1957 Imatra Allround Silver 1958 Kristinehamn Allround Silver 1960 Östersund Allround Bronze 1956 Kvarnsveden Allround Bronze 1964 Kristinehamn Allround

Tamara Nikolayevna Rylova (born October 1, 1931, died February 1, 2021) was an amazing speed skater from the Soviet Union. She was one of the best skaters in the world during her time. Tamara won many medals and even broke world records!

Tamara Rylova's Amazing Skating Career

After World War II ended, women from the Soviet Union became very strong in speed skating. They were the top skaters for about 20 years. Tamara Rylova was one of these incredible athletes. She trained hard at a sports club called Burevestnik in Leningrad.

Tamara first competed nationally in 1952. Her first international race was in 1954 at the World Allround Championships. Soon, everyone knew she was a serious competitor.

Breaking Records and Winning Medals

In early 1955, Tamara showed how good she was. She set a new world record in the 500-meter race. This broke a record that had stood for almost 18 years! In the same month, she broke two more world records.

The very next month, she won a silver medal at the 1955 World Allround Championships. She finished just behind another Soviet skater, Rimma Zhukova. This showed that her toughest rivals were often other skaters from her own country.

The next year, Tamara won a bronze medal. Again, two other Soviet skaters took the gold and silver. This was very common! From 1953 to 1964, Soviet women won all three medals at every single one of the twelve World Allround Championships.

Becoming a World Champion

In 1957 and 1958, Tamara won two more silver medals at the World Allround Championships. Both times, she finished behind Inga Artamonova. Finally, in 1959, Tamara became the World Allround Champion! She had a big lead over the silver medalist, Valentina Stenina.

The next year, in 1960, she won another silver medal at the World Allround Championships. She had a good lead after three races, but Valentina Stenina skated the final 3,000-meter race much faster.

Olympic Dreams

At the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley, Tamara was the world record holder for both the 500-meter and 1,000-meter races. She finished fourth in the 500-meter race, just missing a medal by a tiny bit. But she did win a bronze medal in the 1,000-meter race!

After the 1960 Olympics, Tamara didn't compete internationally much. She made one more international appearance four years later, in 1964. There, she won another bronze medal at the World Allround Championship. She stopped competing nationally in 1966.

Winning Medals: A Champion's Collection

Here's a look at the medals Tamara Rylova won at important championships:

Breaking World Records

During her amazing career, Tamara Rylova set four world records: