Sport plays an important role in Estonian culture. Estonia first competed as a nation at the

1920 Summer Olympics The 1920 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1920; nl, Olympische Zomerspelen van 1920; german: Olympische Sommerspiele 1920), officially known as the Games of the VII Olympiad (french: Jeux de la VIIe olympiade; nl, Spelen van ...

, although the

National Olympic Committee A National Olympic Committee (NOC) is a national constituent of the worldwide Olympic movement. Subject to the controls of the International Olympic Committee, NOCs are responsible for organizing their people's participation in the Olympic Games ...

was established in 1923. Estonian athletes took part at every Olympic Games until the country was annexed by the Soviet Union in 1940. The

1980 Summer Olympics The 1980 Summer Olympics (russian: Летние Олимпийские игры 1980, Letniye Olimpiyskiye igry 1980), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad (russian: Игры XXII Олимпиады, Igry XXII Olimpiady) and commo ...

sailing regatta was held in the capital city Tallinn. Estonia has won most of its Olympic medals in wrestling, athletics, weightlifting, and

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or other forms of assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreation ...

Athletics

Athletics is popular in Estonia, shown by number of medals won this field of sport. Jüri Lossmann came in second on the marathon at the

1920 Olympic Games The 1920 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1920; nl, Olympische Zomerspelen van 1920; german: Olympische Sommerspiele 1920), officially known as the Games of the VII Olympiad (french: Jeux de la VIIe olympiade; nl, Spelen van ...

. Aleksander Klumberg won the bronze medal in 1924 in the men's decathlon competition. Between 2000 and 2009, Estonia scored at least one medal in major international competition in every year:

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

, and

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

. Before that, Erki Nool won the gold medal in

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...

. * Notable athletes in Estonia: Erki Nool, Gerd Kanter,

Andrus Värnik Andrus Värnik (born 27 September 1977) is a retired Estonian track and field athlete who competed in the javelin throw. He is a World Champion, having 2005 World Championships in Athletics – Men's javelin throw, won gold in 2005 World Champions ...

, Rasmus Mägi, Aleksander Tammert, Pavel Loskutov, Jüri Lossmann, Aleksander Klumberg

Basketball

Basketball is a notable sport in Estonia, and has often been called the " national sport of Estonia". Estonia national basketball team participated in

1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (German: ''Olympische Sommerspiele 1936''), officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad (German: ''Spiele der XI. Olympiade'') and commonly known as Berlin 1936 or the Nazi Olympics, were an international multi-sp ...

and have appeared in

EuroBasket EuroBasket, also commonly referred to as the European Basketball Championship, is the main international basketball competition that is contested quadrennially, by the senior men's national teams that are governed by FIBA Europe, which is the E ...

six times. They had twice finished EuroBasket on 5th place before Soviet occupation. Many Estonian players also represented and won medals with the Soviet team. After regaining independence, Estonia finished Eurobasket 6th in 1993. The domestic top-tier basketball championship is called the Korvpalli Meistriliiga.

BC Kalev/Cramo BC Kalev, known as BC Kalev/Cramo for sponsorship reasons, is a professional basketball club based in Tallinn, Estonia. The team plays in the Korvpalli Meistriliiga, the Estonian-Latvian Basketball League and the FIBA Europe Cup. They play the ...

has the best results in the recent years, while University of Tartu team has won the league a record 26 times. Estonian clubs also participate in European and regional competitions.

Beach volleyball

Kristjan Kais Kristjan Kais (born 3 March 1976) is a retired 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 ...

and

Rivo Vesik Rivo Vesik (born 15 July 1980 in Pärnu) is a former Estonian beach volleyball player and current beach volleyball coach. With teammate Kristjan Kais Kristjan Kais (born 3 March 1976) is a retired Estonia Estonia, formally the Rep ...

have playing at the FIVB World Tour. In

, they won Zagreb Open and competed at the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...

. Their best result from World Championships was 5th. Estonia featured national teams in

beach volleyball Beach volleyball is a team sport played by two teams of two or more players on a sand court divided by a net. Similar to indoor volleyball, the objective of the game is to send the ball over the net and to ground it on the opponent's side of the ...

that competed at the

2018–2020 CEV Beach Volleyball Continental Cup The 2018–2020 CEV Beach Volleyball Continental Cup were a beach volleyball double-gender event. Teams representing European countries were split into groups of four, where an elimination bracket determined the two teams to advance to the next stag ...

in both the women's and the men's sections.

Cricket

The

Estonia Cricket Association Estonia Cricket Association is the official governing body of the sport of cricket in Estonia. Its current headquarters is in Tallinn, Estonia. Estonia Cricket Association is Estonia's representative at the International Cricket Council and is an ...

(ECA) was formed in 2007 and became members of the International Cricket Council in 2008. The ECA runs Men's and Women's leagues, playing 40-40, T20 and Super 8's competitions. It has member clubs in Tallinn and

Tartu Tartu is the second largest city in Estonia after the Northern European country's political and financial capital, Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 91,407 (as of 2021). It is southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres (152 miles) northeast of ...

. Estonia is also home to a unique variant of the game in Ice cricket. The Ice Cricket World Championship was held annually in the Estonian city of Tallinn played upon the surface of a frozen lake.

Cycling

* Jaan Kirsipuu has been the best Estonian road bicycle racer. He has won 4 Tour de France stages and 1 Vuelta a España stage. Kirsipuu also wore the yellow jersey for six days in the

1999 Tour de France The 1999 Tour de France was a multiple stage bicycle race held from 3 to 25 July, and the 86th edition of the Tour de France. It has no overall winner—although American cyclist Lance Armstrong originally won the event, the United States Anti-D ...

. * Erika Salumäe is an Estonian track bicycle racer who won the first Olympic gold medal for Estonia after the country regained its independence in 1991. * Tanel Kangert has finished inside top 20 all the three Grand Tours - 13th place in

2013 Giro d'Italia The 2013 Giro d'Italia was the 96th edition of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It started in Naples and finished in Brescia. Vincenzo Nibali of team Astana won the general classification. Teams As a UCI World Tour race, the ...

, 11th place in

2013 Vuelta a España The 2013 Vuelta a España was the 68th edition of the race. Chris Horner won the 2013 Vuelta at the age of 41 on 15 September 2013, becoming the oldest ever Grand Tour winner. Horner beat his nearest challenger, Italian Vincenzo Nibali, by finis ...

and 20th place in

2014 Tour de France The 2014 Tour de France was the 101st edition of the race, one of cycling's Grand Tours. The race included 21 stages, starting in Leeds, Yorkshire, United Kingdom, on 5 July and finishing on the Champs-Élysées in Paris on 27 July. The race al ...

. In

he helped Vincenzo Nibali to take the first place in General classification. * Rein Taaramäe finished the

2011 Tour de France The 2011 Tour de France was the 98th edition of the race. It started on 2 July at the Passage du Gois and ended on the Champs-Élysées in Paris on 24 July. The cyclists competed in 21 stages over 23 days, covering a distance of . The route en ...

in 11th place and won the 14th stage of

2011 Vuelta a España The 2011 Vuelta a España was held from 20 August to 11 September. The bicycle race began in Benidorm with a team time trial and ended, as is traditional, in Madrid. The 2011 Vuelta was the 66th edition of the race and was the first Vuelta in 33 ...

. He also held the white jersey for Stage 8 and 9 in the

2012 Tour de France The 2012 Tour de France was the 99th edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It started in the Belgian city of Liège on 30 June and finished on the Champs-Élysées in Paris on 22 July. The Tour consisted of 21 stages, inc ...

. *

Aavo Pikkuus Aavo Pikkuus (born 23 November 1954) is a retired Estonian cyclist. He was part of the that won the 100 km team time trial at the 1976 Summer Olympics and 1977 UCI Road World Championships and finished second at the world championships in 19 ...

won 1976 Olympic gold medal with Soviet Union team time trial event.

Disc golf

2022 Women's Professional Disc Golf Champion, Kristin Tattar still resides in her hometown of Pärnu.

Fencing

Épée fencing has been very successful for Estonia in the past few decades. Oksana Jermakova became the first fencing World Champion for Estonia winning Individual épée in

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

Irina Embrich Irina Embrich, née Zamkovaja (born 12 July 1980) is an Estonian left-handed épée fencer. Embrich is a two-time team European champion and 2017 team world champion. A two-time Olympian, Embrich is a 2021 team Olympic champion. Embrich compet ...

has won the most total medals for Estonia. Nikolai Novosjolov became the world champion in

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

and

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

. At 2013 Championships

Julia Beljajeva Julia Beljajeva (born 21 July 1992) is an Estonian right-handed épée fencer. Beljajeva is a two-time team European champion, 2017 team world champion, and 2013 individual world champion. A two-time Olympian, Beljajeva is a 2021 team Olympic ...

also won the gold medal. At the

2018 European Championships The 2018 European Championships were the first edition of the European Championships. It was a multi-sport event which took place in Berlin, Germany, and Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom (with Edinburgh hosting the diving events and Gleneagles ...

Estonian women took a triple win in the individual épée. Both women's and men's épée teams have won championship medals. Women's épée team became the Olympic champions at the

2020 Summer Olympics The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July. Tokyo was selected as the host city during the ...

. Estonia has won 17 World Fencing Championships medals and several

European Fencing Championships The European Fencing Championships is an annual top-level European fencing competition organized by the European Fencing Confederation. History The first competition bearing the name of "European Fencing Championships" was held in Paris in 1921. ...

medals. * Notable fencers in Estonia:

Sven Järve Sven Järve (born 25 July 1980) is an Estonian épée fencer. Jarve won the bronze medal at the épée 2006 World Fencing Championships after he lost 15–12 to Joaquim Videira in the semi final. Achievements : 2006 World Fencing Championships ...

, Oksana Jermakova,

Kaido Kaaberma Kaido Kaaberma (born 18 November 1968) is an Estonian épée fencer. Kaaberma won the bronze medal in the épée individual competition at the 1999 World Fencing Championships. He won a silver medal in 2001 with the Estonian épée team at the ...

Erika Kirpu Erika Kirpu (born 22 June 1992) is an Estonia, Estonian right-handed épée Fencing, fencer. Kirpu is a two-time team European champion and 2017 team world champion. A two-time Olympic Games, Olympian, Kirpu is a 2021 team Olympic champion. Kir ...

, Kristina Kuusk,

Katrina Lehis Katrina Lehis (born 19 December 1994) is an Estonian left-handed épée fencer, 2018 individual European champion, 2021 team Olympic champion, and 2021 individual Olympic bronze medalist. Career Lehis began fencing in 2004. Coached by Helen Nel ...

, Nikolai Novosjolov and

Maarika Võsu Maarika Võsu (born 7 June 1972) is an Estonian fencer. She competed in the individual and team épée events at the 1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 an ...

Floorball

Estonia men's national floorball team has been successful at the World Championships with best result 7th and multiple 8th places.

Football

Football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

is one of the most popular sports in Estonia by number of active players, although nothing special has been achieved. Estonia advanced to the

2012 UEFA European Football Championship The 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2012 or simply Euro 2012, was the 14th European Championship for men's national football teams organised by UEFA. The final tournament, held between 8 June and 1 ...

qualifying play-offs.

Freestyle skiing

Kelly Sildaru won women's slopestyle at 2015 Dew tour. At just 13 years old, Kelly Sildaru might be the smallest competitor in the field, but she brought the biggest run of the contest, spinning all four directions and showcasing technicality on the rails in the process. On the jumps, Kelly landed a switch right 900, right corked 720, switch left 900 and left 720, and the judges rewarded her with a 90.80 to put her into 1st place. Kelly won Gold in the slopestyle event in the

2016 Winter X Games Winter X Games XX (re-titled Winter X Games Aspen '16; styled as Winter X Games Twenty in the official logo) were held from January 28 to January 31, 2016, in Aspen, Colorado. They were the 15th consecutive Winter X Games held in Aspen. The events ...

beating Tiril Sjåstad Christiansen. With this win, at age 13, Kelly became the youngest gold medalist to date at an X Games winter event. She was the gold medal favorite for the women’s slopestyle event in 2018 Winter Olympics, but missed competing in the Games because of a knee injury. Her later career has not been so successful, but she managed to win bronze medal at the 2022 Olympics

Ice hockey

Ice hockey in Estonia is governed by the Estonian Ice Hockey Association (Eesti Jäähokiliit). The top-tier league of men's ice hockey in Estonia is the Meistriliiga (also known as ''Coolbet Hokiliiga'' for sponsorship reasons). The top-tier league of women's ice hockey in Estonia is the Naiste Hokiliiga.

Judo

Judo is one of the most successful field of sport for Estonia. Since 1996, Estonia has won several medals in major international competitions. * 3 Olympic medals ** 3 Bronze medals:

and

. * 4 World Judo Championships medals ** 3 Silver medals:

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...

and bronze medal in 2003. * 15

European Judo Championships The European Judo Championships is the Judo European Championship organized by the European Judo Union. The 2015 and 2019 editions were held during the respective European Games. This is also expected for future editions of the European Games. ...

medals. *

Indrek Pertelson Indrek Pertelson (born 21 April 1971) is an Estonian judoka. At the 2000 and 2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Α ...

Aleksei Budõlin Aleksei Budõlin (born 5 April 1976) is an Estonian judoka. At the 2000 Summer Olympics he won the bronze medal in the men's Half Middleweight (73–81 kg) category, together with Nuno Delgado Nuno Miguel Delgado ComIH (born 27 August 1 ...

and

Martin Padar Martin Padar (born 11 April 1979 in Tallinn) is an Estonian judoka, who has competed in the men's half heavyweight (-100 kg), but now competes in the heavyweight (+100 kg) category. A former European champion, he has also competed a ...

are the most famous Judo athletes in Estonia in the past years.

Motocross

* Tanel Leok is an Estonian motocross racer competing in the Motocross World Championship in MX1 class.

Racing

* Marko Asmer is an Estonian auto racing driver, whose career in

single seater An open-wheel single-seater (often known as formula car) is a car with the wheels outside the car's main body, and usually having only one seat. Open-wheel cars contrast with street cars, sports cars, stock cars, and touring cars, which have thei ...

junior formula is notable for his British Formula Three Championship title in 2007. Asmer is also the first Estonian to test a Formula One car. * Kevin Korjus is an Estonian racing driver. He won the

Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 Formula Renault Eurocup was a Formula Renault motor racing championship. Eurocup raced only on European circuits. It served as a support series to the Formula 3.5 V8, Formula Renault 3.5 Series as part of the World Series by Renault from 2005 to ...

championship in 2010 and finished seventh in the GP3 Series in 2013. * Ralf Aron is an Estonian racing driver. He became champion in the

Italian F4 Championship Italian Formula 4 Championship is the first formula racing series regulated according to FIA Formula 4 regulations. The inaugural season was the 2014 Italian F4 Championship, effectively replacing the Formula Abarth. History Gerhard Berger a ...

in 2015. * Jüri Vips is an Estonian racing driver. Vips became champion of

2017 ADAC Formula 4 Championship The 2017 ADAC Formula 4 Championship was the third season of the ADAC Formula 4. It began on 29 April at Oschersleben and finished on 24 September at Hockenheim after seven triple header rounds. Teams and drivers In December 2016, ten teams and ...

. He is currently competing in the IndyCar Series with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. *

Paul Aron Paul Aron (born 4 February 2004) is an Estonian racing driver currently set to race in the 2023 FIA Formula 3 Championship with Prema Racing. He previously competed in the Formula Regional European Championship for Prema in 2021 and 2022, in wh ...

is an Estonian racing driver. He is currently competing in the FIA Formula 3 Championship with Prema Racing. * Tõnis Kasemets is an Estonia racing driver. He has driven in Champ Car World Series. His maiden achievement is the

2022 IMSA Prototype Challenge The 2022 IMSA Prototype Challenge was the seventeenth and final season of the IMSA Lites series and its successors, and the sixth under the IMSA Prototype Challenge name. The season started on January 21 at Daytona International Speedway and co ...

championship title. *

Sten Pentus Sten Pentus (born 3 November 1981 in Tallinn) is an Estonian racing driver. He is a former Estonian Formula 4 Champion, and a previous winner of the Formula Baltic championship in a Reynard 903. At the end of the 2008 season, Pentus tested for ...

is an Estonian racing driver who competed in Blancpain Sprint Series. *

Martin Rump Martin Rump (born on 2 April 1996) is the first Estonian racing driver competing in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. He is currently competing in European Le Mans Series with Proton Competition. Rump participated in endurance events such as the European ...

is an Estonian racing driver and currently compiting in European Le Mans Series. He is the only Estonian who has competed

24 Hours of Le Mans The 24 Hours of Le Mans (french: link=no, 24 Heures du Mans) is an endurance-focused Sports car racing, sports car race held annually near the town of Le Mans, France. It is the world's oldest active Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance r ...

Rallying

Rallying is one of the most popular sport in Estonia. It has a long history in Estonia since the Soviet time, when half of the rally drivers of Soviet Union Rally Team were from Estonia. Every year WRC Rally Estonia attracts thousands of rally fans to watch worlds best drivers competing. * Markko Märtin was the first Estonian who won a number of rallies in the World Rally Championship. Markko has scored 5 WRC victories, total of 18 podium finishes, 207 points and 101 stage wins. In

, he finished the season with 3rd place. Markko was one of the best rally drivers, but retired after an accident in 2005. Rally fans from Estonia continued to be interested in WRC, visiting Rally Finland and other rallies. * Ott Tänak is 2019 WRC Champion, and

Martin Järveoja Martin Järveoja (; born 18 August 1987) is an Estonian rally co-driver. He is currently teamed with Ott Tänak and is competing for Hyundai in the World Rally Championship. Rally career He is the son of Estonian politician Toomas Järveoja, ...

won the FIA World Rally Championship for Co-Drivers that season. Previously Tänak had repeated Märtin's achievement by finishing 3rd overall in

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

, winning his fifth rally in August 2018 and eventually surpassing Märtin by winning his sixth rally in September 2018. Tänak also finished 3rd overall in

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

, winning three rallies in a row and mathematically still being in the title race at the last rally of the season. He was the highest pointscorer for Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT that season, who won the Manufacturer's Championship that season. * Rally Estonia was added to the World Rally Championship calendar from 2020.

Rowing

Rowing is a popular sport in Estonia. One reason is Jüri Jaanson, but there are also other well-known rowers in Estonia. Between 2004 and 2009, Estonia scored at least one medal in major international competition in every year:

, and

. After six years Estonia won bronze medal in

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

. Tõnu Endrekson, Andrei Jämsä, Allar Raja and Kaspar Taimsoo have also won an Olympic medal.

Sailing

Twin brothers

Tõnu Tõniste Tõnu Tõniste (born 26 April 1967) is Estonian Olympic sailor. He competed in four consecutive Summer Olympics, starting in 1988, winning a silver and a bronze medal in the men's 470 class, for the Soviet Union (silver, 1988) and for Estonia ( ...

and

Toomas Tõniste Toomas Tõniste (born 26 April 1967) is an Estonian sailor and politician, and the former Minister of Finance. Career in sports Tõniste competed in four consecutive Summer Olympics, starting in 1988. He won a silver and a bronze medal in the ...

competed in four consecutive Summer Olympics, starting in 1988. They won a silver and a bronze medal in the Men's 470 Class, for the Soviet Union (silver, 1988) and for Estonia (bronze, 1992).

Skiing

Skiing is very popular in Estonia. Otepää is a popular skiing resort. Otepää is also known as the "winter capital" of Estonia (in contrast to the "summer capital" Pärnu). It is also the annual Cross-country skiing World Cup event. The

2011 Nordic Junior World Ski Championships The 2011 FIS Nordic Junior World Ski Championships were held in Otepää, Estonia from 26 January to 31 January 2011. It was the 34th Junior World Championships and the 6th Under-23 World Championships in nordic skiing. Medal summary Junior eve ...

was held in Otepää also. In 2000, Raul Olle won Vasaloppet, which is amongst the oldest, longest, and biggest cross-country ski races in the world. In 1999 Estonian skiing found success at international level, winning medals at World Championships. Estonia has won 4 gold, 2 silver, and 1 bronze medal at the Winter Olympic Games. * Olympic medals:

, and

. * World Championships medals:

, and

Andrus Veerpalu Andrus Veerpalu (born 8 February 1971) is a retired Estonian cross-country skier. He is Estonia's most successful Winter Olympian, having won the gold medal in men's 15 km classical in 2002 and 2006, and silver in men's 50 km classical in 20 ...

, Kristina Šmigun-Vähi and Jaak Mae are some of the most popular athletes in Estonia.

Speed skating

Ants Antson Ants Antson (11 November 1938 – 31 October 2015) was an Estonian speed skater who competed for the Soviet Union. Biography Antson trained at the Kalev Voluntary Sports Society. Coached by former World, Olympic, and European Champion Boris ...

(competing for the Soviet Union) won a gold medal at the

1964 Winter Olympics The 1964 Winter Olympics, officially known as the IX Olympic Winter Games (german: IX. Olympische Winterspiele) and commonly known as Innsbruck 1964 ( bar, Innschbruck 1964, label=Austro-Bavarian), was a winter multi-sport event which was celebr ...

in Innsbruck, Austria for the 1500m. The same year he became the European Allround Champion and received the Oscar Mathisen Award.

Swimming

* Swimming is a popular sport among Estonians. Estonian athletes have found some success at the European Short Course Swimming Championships – Indrek Sei,

Jane Trepp Jane Trepp (born 13 March 1988) is a retired Estonian swimmer. She won a bronze medal in 50 m freestyle at the 2004 European Junior Swimming Championships and a silver medal in 50 m breaststroke at the 2009 European Short Course Swimming Champi ...

, Triin Aljand and

Martti Aljand Martti Aljand (born 22 November 1987 in Tallinn) is an Estonian individual medley and breaststroke swimmer. At 2008 Summer Olympics he finished 45th in 100 m breaststroke with national record and 46th in 200 m breaststroke.

have won medals in the past years. * Triin Aljand won first long course swimming medal for Estonia in Debrecen 2012.

Tennis

* Kaia Kanepi is an

Estonian Estonian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Estonia, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe * Estonians, people from Estonia, or of Estonian descent * Estonian language * Estonian cuisine * Estonian culture See also

...

professional female tennis player. Her career-high ranking was set at World No. 16 on 7 February 2011. Kanepi won her first WTA Tour Title in

Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...

in 2010, becoming the first Estonian female player to win a WTA title. She has also reached six Grand Slam Quarter-finals, becoming the first Estonian to achieve this and was the first Estonian to be ranked in the top twenty. * Jürgen Zopp made a breakthrough on the ATP tour in 2012, qualifying for the main draws of each the Australian Open, Roland Garros, and Wimbledon, and achieving his first main draw ATP tournament win in Bucharest, establishing himself as a top-100 player in the world rankings. * Anett Kontaveit has won six singles titles on the WTA tour as well as eleven singles and five doubles titles on the ITF tour during her career. In June 2022, she reached her best singles ranking of world number 2, becoming the first Estonian singles player to reach the top 10 and highest-ranked of all time.

Volleyball

* The Estonia men's national volleyball team finished the 2009 European Volleyball Championship in 14th place, the 2011 European Volleyball Championship in 12th place and the 2015 European Volleyball Championship in 11th place.

Weightlifting

Weightlifting was one of the most successful field of sport for Estonia in the past.

Alfred Neuland Alfred Karl Neuland (10 October 1895 – 16 November 1966) was an Estonian weightlifter. He competed in the 1920 and 1924 Olympics and won a gold and a silver medal, respectively, becoming the first Olympic gold medalist from Estonia. He won a ...

competed in the 1920 and 1924 Olympics and won a gold and a silver medal, respectively, becoming the first Olympic gold medalist from Estonia. Alfred Schmidt was a featherweight weightlifter who won a silver medal at the 1920 Summer Olympics. Arnold Luhaäär competed in the 1928 and 1936 Olympics and won a silver and a bronze medal, respectively. Jaan Talts won a silver medal in weightlifting for the Soviet Union at the 1968 Olympic games and a gold medal at the 1972 Olympic games. * Other notable weightlifters in Estonia: Jaan Kikkas,

Harald Tammer Harald Tammer (9 January 1899 – 6 June 1942) was an Estonian journalist, athlete and weightlifter. As a heavyweight weightlifter he won a world title in 1922 and a bronze medal at the 1924 Olympics. As an athlete he competed in the shot put ...

and

Mart Seim Mart Seim (born 24 October 1990) is an Estonian weightlifter competing in the +105 kg category. Seim competed for Estonia at the 2014 World Weightlifting Championships finishing 4th with a total of 431 kg. At the 2015 World Weightlifti ...

Wrestling

Wrestling was the most successful and also very popular Olympic event for Estonia between 1920 and 1936. In

, Heiki Nabi became the first

amateur wrestling Amateur wrestling is a variant of wrestling practiced in collegiate, school, or other amateur level competitions. There are two international wrestling styles performed in the Olympic Games: freestyle and Greco-Roman. Both styles are under the ...

World Champion for Estonia. At the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

, Nabi won the silver medal in the Men's Greco-Roman 120 kg. Nabi continued his great career winning second gold medal at 2013 World Championships and bronze medal at 2014 World Championships. * Notable wrestlers in Estonia: Aleksander Aberg, Georg Hackenschmidt, Georg Lurich,

Osvald Käpp Osvald Käpp (17 February 1905 – 22 December 1995) was an Estonian wrestler who competed in freestyle and Greco-Roman lightweight events at the 1924, 1928 and 1932 Summer Olympics. He won the freestyle contest in 1928 and served as the Olympic ...

Martin Klein Martin Klein may refer to: * Martin Klein (footballer) (born 1984), Czech international footballer *Martin Klein (wrestler) (1884–1947), Estonian wrestler *Martin A. Klein, historian of the Atlantic slave trade *Martin J. Klein (1924–2009), Ame ...

Anton Koolmann Anton Koolmann (11 September 1899 – 29 June 1953) was a wrestler and coach from Kuusalu Parish, Estonia who took part at the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris, France. Career 1924 after winning Estonian Greco-Roman wrestling championships ...

Johannes Kotkas Johannes Kotkas (3 February 1915 – 8 May 1998) was a heavyweight Greco-Roman wrestler from Estonia who won a gold medal at the 1952 Summer Olympics. He held the European title in 1938, 1939 and 1947 and placed second at the 1953 world champio ...

Jaan Jaago Jaan Jaago (6 July 1887 Luunja Parish, Tartu County – 28 August 1949 Berlin) was an Estonian wrestler. 1913–1915, 1924-1926 and 1928 he won three times World Wrestling Championships. In 1921 he moved to Germany. He died in 1949 and in 190 h ...

Albert Kusnets Albert Eduard Kusnets (25 August 1902 – 1942) was a middleweight Greco-Roman wrestler from Estonia. He competed in the 1924 and 1928 Summer Olympics and placed fourth and third, respectively. He won his 1928 bronze medal despite breaking a le ...

, August Neo, Eduard Pütsep, Voldemar Väli and female wrestler Epp Mäe. * Kristjan Palusalu is one of the most well-known athletes in Estonia even though he competed 80 years ago in the

Other sports

* Sumo wrestling hasn't been popular in Estonia, but Baruto found real success in this sport. * Margus Hunt is an Estonian American football defensive end, playing in the National Football League (NFL). He was junior world champion in shot put and discus throw, having never played football before starting university in the US. *

Andrus Murumets Andrus Murumets (born 20 July 1978) is an Estonian strongman and entrant to the World's Strongest Man contest. He reached 5th in the World Rankings according to the IFSA rankings in 2008. Andrus competed in the IFSA World Championships in 2005 f ...

is an Estonian strongman. He won Strongman Champions League in 2009. * Kiiking, a relatively new sport, was invented in 1996 by Ado Kosk in Estonia. Kiiking involves a modified swing in which the rider of the swing tries to go around 360 degrees. * Estonia has also won many medals in ice yachting competitions. * Estonian sportsmen have also won several medals at inshore powerboat racing championships. *Robin Kool, also known as Ropz, is a professional Counter-Strike: Global Offensive player, joining Mousesports at the age of 17.

Athletics

Basketball

Beach volleyball

Cricket

Cycling

Disc golf

Fencing

Floorball

Football

Freestyle skiing

Ice hockey

Judo

Motocross

Racing

Rallying

Rowing

Sailing

Skiing

Speed skating

Swimming

Tennis

Volleyball

Weightlifting

Wrestling

Other sports

International championships hosted by Estonia

Gallery

See also

References

External links