Ants Paju (10 September 1944 – 28 June 2011) was an

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

n politician, journalist, athlete, and engineer. He was a member of

VIII Riigikogu VIII Riigikogu was the eighth legislature of Estonian Parliament (Riigikogu). The legislature was elected after 1995 election. Election results Officers Speaker of the Riigikogu: Toomas Savi Toomas Savi (born 30 December 1942 in Tartu, Est ...

. Ants Paju was born in the village of Tamsi, Pajusi Rural Municipality,

Viljandi County Viljandi County ( et, Viljandi maakond or ''Viljandimaa''; german: Kreis Fellin) is one of 15 counties of Estonia. It is located in southern Estonia bordering Pärnu, Järva, Jõgeva, Tartu and Valga counties. History Viljandimaa, under the ...

(now, in

Põltsamaa Parish Põltsamaa ( et, Põltsamaa vald) is a rural municipality of Estonia, in Jõgeva County. It has a population of 2722 (2001) and an area of 416.9 km² (161.0 mi²). Populated places Põltsamaa Parish has one town, 3 small boroughs, an ...

Jõgeva County Jõgeva County ( et, Jõgeva maakond or ''Jõgevamaa'') is one of 15 counties of Estonia. It is situated in eastern part of the country and borders Ida-Viru County to the north-east, Lake Peipus to the east, Tartu County to the south, Viljandi C ...

). In 1949, aged four, he was deported with his family to

Siberia Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part of ...

with his family by Soviet authorities. Following the death of

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secreta ...

and the

Khrushchev Thaw The Khrushchev Thaw ( rus, хрущёвская о́ттепель, r=khrushchovskaya ottepel, p=xrʊˈɕːɵfskəjə ˈotʲ:ɪpʲɪlʲ or simply ''ottepel'')William Taubman, Khrushchev: The Man and His Era, London: Free Press, 2004 is the period ...

, the family were permitted to return to Estonia in 1955. He graduated from secondary school in

Põltsamaa Põltsamaa (german: Oberpahlen) is a town in Põltsamaa Parish, Jõgeva County, Estonia. The town is situated on the Põltsamaa River, and features a 13th-century castle. Gallery Põltsamaa Jõgi.jpg, Põltsamaa River Põltsamaa Vabadussõja m ...

in 1963, and from the Estonian Academy of Agriculture (now, the

Estonian University of Life Sciences The Estonian University of Life Sciences ( Estonian: ''Eesti Maaülikool'', EMÜ) located in Tartu, Estonia, is the former Estonian Agricultural University, which was established in 1951 and renamed and restructured in November 2005. Eesti Maa� ...

) in 1970, with a degree in forest engineering. In 1979, he graduated from the Leningrad Higher Party School with a degree in journalism. He began participating in sports in 1957. Under the guidance of Ahto Talving, he trained as a

middle-distance running Middle-distance running events are Track and field#Running, track races longer than Sprint (running), sprints, up to 3000 metres. The standard middle distances are the 800 metres, 1500 metres and mile run, although the 3000 metres may also be clas ...

, later he trained mainly in

shot put The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. The shot put competition for men has been a part of the modern Olympics since their revival in 1896, and women's ...

and discus. In 1970 he became the champion of track and field sports associations in discus and in 1972, shot put. In 1972, he won a silver medal at the Estonian Athletics Championships and a bronze medal in 1973. Paju competed on the Estonian team from 1972 until 1973. As a journalist, he worked as the deputy editor of the Jõgeva district newspaper ''Punalipp'' and the editor-in-chief of the magazine ''

Eesti Loodus ''Eesti Loodus'' ('Nature of Estonia') is magazine published in Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Fin ...

''. From 2000 until 2001, Paju was the mayor of

Jõgeva Jõgeva (german: Laisholm) is a small town in Estonia with a population of around 5000 people. It is the capital of Jõgeva Parish and Jõgeva County. History Jõgeva was first mentioned in 1599 as ''Jagiwa'' manor, being established only rec ...

. In 2001, he was awarded the

Order of the White Star The Order of the White Star ( et, Valgetähe teenetemärk; french: Ordre de l'Etoile Blanche) was instituted in 1936. The Order of the White Star is bestowed on Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic ...

, V Class. In 2003, he was awarded the

Order of the National Coat of Arms The Order of the National Coat of Arms ( et, Riigivapi teenetemärk, french: Ordre du Blason National) was instituted by Konstantin Päts on 7 October 1936 to commemorate 24 February 1918, the day on which Estonian independence was declared. The ...

, III Class. Paju died in 2011, aged 66, and is buried in Põltsamaa cemetery. A memorial and bench created by

Tauno Kangro Tauno Kangro (born 25 May 1966 in Tallinn) is an Estonian sculptor. In 1993 he graduated from Estonian Academy of Arts The Estonian Academy of Arts ( Estonian: ''Eesti Kunstiakadeemia'', EKA) is the only public university in Estonia providing ...

to honour to Paju was unveiled in Sõpruse Park in Jõgeva in 2018. Paju had founded the park in 1973.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Paju, Ants 1944 births 2011 deaths Estonian Greens politicians Estonian Centre Party politicians Isamaa politicians Members of the Riigikogu, 1995–1999 Voters of the Estonian restoration of Independence Mayors of places in Estonia 20th-century Estonian politicians Estonian prisoners and detainees Estonian discus throwers Estonian shot putters Estonian journalists Estonian editors Estonian magazine editors Recipients of the Order of the White Star, 5th Class Recipients of the Order of the National Coat of Arms, 3rd Class Estonian University of Life Sciences alumni People from Põltsamaa Parish Eesti Loodus editors