Kamila Skolimowska

Kamila Skolimowska (* November 4, 1982 in Warsaw, † February 18, 2009 in Vila Real de Santo António, Portugal) was a Polish hammer thrower and Olympic gold medalist.

Skolimowska was 13 years old. Polish women in the fledgling discipline athletics champion with the national record of 47.66 m The following year she was European Junior Champion and 1998 she won the European Championships in Budapest in seventh place. In 1999 she presented in Warsaw with 66,62 m their first of five junior world records and shortly thereafter became Junior World Champion.

Shortly before the 2000 Olympic Games for the first time she threw over 70 meters. In Sydney, it increased to 71.16 m and won the gold medal with almost half meters ahead of Olga Kusenkowa (RUS ), and almost two meters on Münchow Kirsten (GER ). She was making her the youngest Olympic champion these Games.

At the World Athletics Championships in Edmonton in 2001, she finished fourth, and at the European Championships in Munich in 2002 she won silver.

In 2003, she was eighth at the World Championships in Paris, 2004 Fifth in the Olympics in Athens and 2005 seventh at the World Championships in Helsinki and winner at the Universiade.

At the European Championships in Gothenburg she won the bronze medal in 2006, and on 11 May 2007 she presented with 76,83 m her 17th Polish record. With this size it was last (February 2009) Fourth of the Eternal world rankings. At the 2007 World Championships in Osaka, she came to fourth place. At the Olympic Games in Beijing in 2008, she qualified for the finals, where her however succeeded not a valid test.

The following year she died unexpectedly in a training camp in Vila Real de Santo António to a pulmonary embolism.

Kamila Skolimowska was 1.80 m tall and weighed 105 kg. Her father was the former weightlifter and Olympian Robert Skolimowski, her mother Teresa Wenta was a successful handball. From 2004 until her death Kamila Skolimowska was employed by the police in Piaseczno. In 2005, she graduated with a degree in economics at the University of Warsaw as a master.

Her grave is in the military cemetery of Powązki in the Warsaw district of Wola.