Iolanda Balaș (, hu, Balázs Jolán, later ''Balázs-Sőtér Jolán''; 12 December 1936 – 11 March 2016) was a Romanian athlete, an

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...

champion and former world record holder in the high jump. She was the first Romanian woman to win an Olympic gold medal and is considered to have been one of the greatest high jumpers of the twentieth century.

Early life

Balaș was born in

Timișoara ), City of Roses ( ro, Orașul florilor), City of Parks ( ro, Orașul parcurilor) , image_map = Timisoara jud Timis.svg , map_caption = Location in Timiș County , pushpin_map = Romania#Europe , pushpin_ ...

to a family of Hungarian descent.Ághassi, Attila (18 November 2005
'Sajnálom, hogy nem Magyarországnak nyertem olimpiákat'
index.hu: Én még az europoliszhoz hasonlító Temesváron születtem, 1936 decemberében. A szüleim, a rokonaim egytől-egyig magyarok, most is Magyarországon élnek. Nekem viszont nem adatott meg ez a lehetőség. "I was born in December 1936, in Timișoara which then still resembled an europolis town. My parents, my relatives are one by one Hungarians, they still live in Hungary. But I could not have this chance" Her mother, Etel Bozó was a homemaker, while her father, Frigyes, was originally a locksmith. Her father served in the Hungarian army until he was captured and brought to the Soviet Union and later back to Hungary, where he settled in Budapest. Balaș tried to reunite the family and move to Hungary, but although she managed to obtain a Hungarian passport in 1947, she was not allowed to leave Romania. When asked in an interview in 2005 whether she had ever thought about defection, she said that it had crossed her mind; however, as it could have resulted in serious retaliation against her relatives, she did not want to risk it. In the interview she said, "I feel sorry that I did not win Olympics for Hungary. But a person represents herself and after that a nation. It was not given for me to bear the Hungarian colors, to make happy those who speak my mother tongue. It evolved this way and I feel sorry for it, but I would have gone mad if I would thought constantly about this contradictory situation. I hope that besides Romanians also Hungarians are proud of me."

Career

Balaș took up athletics owing to her caretaker Luisa Ernst, who was also a retired high jumper. In 1953 she transferred from Timișoara club "Electrica" to CCA (CSA Steaua). After finishing fifth in the 1956 Melbourne Olympics, she won Olympic

gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have bee ...

s at Rome in 1960 (becoming the first Romanian woman to do so) and Tokyo in 1964. At the 1964 Olympics she competed with a torn tendon, which forced her later to withdraw from the 1966 European Championships. Nevertheless, between 1957 and 1966, Balaș won 154 consecutive competitions, not including qualifying competitions or exhibitions. She improved the

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...

14 times, from 1.75 m to 1.91 m, and equalled it once outdoors and once indoors. She was the first woman to jump over six feet. Her technique was a sophisticated version of the scissors technique. Her record of 1.91 m, set in 1961, lasted until the end of 1971 (beaten by

Ilona Gusenbauer Ilona Maria Gusenbauer (née Majdan on 16 September 1947) is a retired Austrian high jumper. She competed at the 1968 and 1972 Olympics and finished in eighth and third place, respectively. She held the Women's high jump world record progression ...

from Austria), when jumpers with a more efficient technique (the

straddle technique The straddle technique was the dominant style in the high jump before the development of the Fosbury Flop. It is a successor of the Western roll, with which it is sometimes confused. Unlike the scissors or flop style of jump, where the jumper a ...

, and later the

Fosbury Fosbury is a small village in Wiltshire, England, on the eastern edge of the county, near Hampshire. It lies about southeast of Marlborough and south of Hungerford, Berkshire. With few inhabitants, it forms part of the civil parish of Tidcom ...

style) took over. Iolanda Balas with husband

After retiring from competition in 1967, Balaș married her former coach Ioan Söter, and taught physical education in Bucharest. Between 1988 and 2005 she was president of the Romanian Athletics Federation. She was also a member of the technical committee of the

European Athletics Association The European Athletic Association (more commonly known as European Athletics) is the governing body for athletics in Europe. It is one of the six Area Associations of the world's athletics governing body World Athletics. European Athletics has 51 ...

, and in 1995 was elected to the women's commission of the

International Association of Athletics Federations World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation (from 1912 to 2001) and International Association of Athletics Federations (from 2001 to 2019, both abbreviated as the IAAF) is the international governing body for ...

(IAAF).

Death

Balaș was diagnosed with

type II diabetes Type 2 diabetes, formerly known as adult-onset diabetes, is a form of diabetes mellitus that is characterized by high blood sugar, insulin resistance, and relative lack of insulin. Common symptoms include increased thirst, frequent urinatio ...

several years before her death and was hospitalized several times after that. She died following gastric complications at Elias Hospital in Bucharest, Romania, at the age of 79. She is buried at

Ghencea Cemetery Ghencea Cemetery is located in Ghencea neighbourhood of Bucharest, on Ghencea Boulevard, in Sector 6 (Bucharest), Sector 6. The cemetery has two sections, civilian and military. Notable interments * Cabiria Andreian Cazacu, mathematician * Gheo ...

in Bucharest.

Awards

Balaș was named an honorary citizen of Timișoara (in 1999) and of Bucharest (in 2001).Iolanda Balas

Romanian Olympic Committee The Romanian Olympic and Sports Committee ( ro, Comitetul Olimpic și Sportiv Român, COSR) is responsible for Romania's participation in the Olympic Games. History The Romanian Olympic Committee ( ro, Comitetul Olimpic Român) was formed in 1 ...

In 2010, she received the royal decoration "Nihil Sine Deo" for special merits to the Romanian sports from

Michael I of Romania Michael I ( ro, Mihai I ; 25 October 1921 – 5 December 2017) was the last King of Romania, reigning from 20 July 1927 to 8 June 1930 and again from 6 September 1940 until his forced abdication on 30 December 1947. Shortly after Michael's ...

, in a ceremony held at the Elisabeta Palace in Bucharest, for the way she led the

Romanian Athletics Federation The Romanian Athletics Federation (Romanian: ''Federația Română de Atletism'') is the Romanian national sporting authority which coordinates athletics activity. History Athletics first appeared in Romania at the end of the 19th century. The ...

and to promote Romanian excellence in sport and young athletes."Iolanda Balaş, Ivan Patzaichin şi Cristian Ţopescu au primit decoraţia regala "Nihil Sine Deo""
''mediafax.ro''. Retrieved 10 October 2019. In 2000, ''

Track & Field News ''Track & Field News'' is an American monthly sports magazine founded in 1948 by brothers Bert Nelson and Cordner Nelson, focused on the world of track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running ...

'' voted Balaș as the best female high jumper of the 20th century. She was inducted into the

IAAF Hall of Fame The IAAF Hall of Fame was established by the International Association of Athletics Federations (since 2019: ''World Athletics'') in 2012. It is intended to honor individuals who have made valuable contributions in the sport of athletics both inter ...

in 2012.

References

External links