Jüri Tarmak

Jüri Tarmak ( born July 21, 1946 in Tallinn) is a former Soviet athlete Estonian origin. It was 1972 Olympic champion in high jump.

Life

First Tarmak played basketball and volleyball and also operating alongside athletics. Since he was tall and slim, he was taken to the high jump. The beginnings in this direction were modest: At 17, Jüri jumped only 1.75 m. Two years later he finally managed to 2 m, but the world leaders failed him still 20 cm. In 1966, the 20 -year-old was able to record his first success: With skipped 2.10 m and was runner- Soviet Junior Championships.

In 1970 he became a member of Athletics Soviet national team. His coaches were Viktor Vaiksaar in Tallinn and Pavel Gojchman at Dynamo Leningrad. In the Indoor Athletics Championships 1971, he won a silver medal and a year later bronze. The highlight of his career he experienced in 1972 by winning the gold medal at the Olympic Games in Munich. He is the last Olympic Gold Medalist who applied the force at that time already obsolete straddle jump style.

Already as a student Tarmak had called an astronomy club to life and attended night school to the day to work as a lab technician in an observatory. In Leningrad, he studied at the Faculty of Mathematics and Mechanics of the University there theoretical astronomy. However, this study he broke off to devote himself to his newly developed interest in socio- scientific issues. He received his PhD and is now working as a lecturer in Political Economy. In February 2001, received the Medal of the Estonian Red Cross was awarded in the 2nd category for his services.

Achievements

• Olympic Games in Munich in 1972: gold with 2.23 m in front of Stefan Young (DDR ) and Dwight Stones ( USA ), each 2.21 m
• European Indoor Championships 1971 in Sofia: silver behind István Major and above Endre Kelemen, both from Hungary
• European Indoor Championships 1972 in Grenoble: bronze behind István Major (Hungary) and Kestutis sapka (Soviet Union)
• Jahresweltbestleistung 1972 with 2.25 m

Others

Jüri Tarmaks father, Aadu Tarmak, was also a successful athlete and won 1943/44, the Estonian Championship in the discus throw.