Mika Kristian Myllylä (12 September 1969 – 5 July 2011) was a Finnish cross-country skier who competed from 1992 to 2005. He won six medals at the

Winter Olympics The Winter Olympic Games (), also known as the Winter Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were held i ...

, earning one gold (1998: 30 km), one silver (1994: 50 km), and four bronzes (1994: 30 km, 4 × 10 km; 1998: 10 km, 4 × 10 km). Myllylä also won a total of nine medals at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships, winning four golds (1997: 50 km, 1999: 10 km, 30 km, 50 km), three silvers (10 km + 15 km combined pursuit: 1997, 1999; 4 × 10 km relay: 1997), and two bronzes (10 km: 1995, 1997). He was on his way to become one of the greatest stars in cross-country skiing history, until he was caught doping in the Finnish 2001 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships scandal for taking hydroxyethyl starch (HES), a

blood plasma Blood plasma is a light Amber (color), amber-colored liquid component of blood in which blood cells are absent, but which contains Blood protein, proteins and other constituents of whole blood in Suspension (chemistry), suspension. It makes up ...

expander usually used to cover up the use of

erythropoietin Erythropoietin (; EPO), also known as erythropoetin, haematopoietin, or haemopoietin, is a glycoprotein cytokine secreted mainly by the kidneys in response to cellular hypoxia; it stimulates red blood cell production ( erythropoiesis) in th ...

(EPO) in athletes. The scandal also affected five other Finnish skiers, including

Jari Isometsä Jari Olavi Isometsä (born 11 September 1968) is a Finland, Finnish former cross-country skiing (sport), cross-country skier who competed from 1990 to 2006. He won three bronze medals in the 4 × 10 km relay at the Winter Olympics (1992, 1994 ...

and Harri Kirvesniemi. Myllylä received a two-year suspension from the FIS as a result. In connection with a 2011 court case, Myllylä gave a sworn statement where he admitted using EPO in the 1990s, during his career. After the suspension Myllylä tried to return to skiing, but failed to come back to the international level despite winning a few Finnish championships. Myllylä retired from the skiing sports in 2005. In the following years he was involved in alcohol-related problems which were extensively covered in Finnish tabloid papers. On 5 July 2011, Myllylä was found dead at his home in

Kokkola Kokkola (; , ) is a town in Finland and the regional capital of Central Ostrobothnia. It is located on the west coast of the country, on the Gulf of Bothnia. The population of Kokkola is approximately , while the Kokkola sub-region, sub-region h ...

. The official police investigation concluded that his death was the result of an accident, and ruled out the possibility of foul play and suicide.

Cross-country skiing results

All results are sourced from the International Ski Federation (FIS).

Olympic Games

* 6 medals – (1 gold, 1 silver, 4 bronze)

World Championships

* 9 medals – (4 gold, 3 silver, 2 bronze)

World Cup

Season titles

* 1 title – (1 Long Distance)

Season standings

:a. 29th in the Long Distance World Cup.
26th in the Middle Distance World Cup.

Individual podiums

* 10 victories * 25 podiums

Team podiums

* 6 victories – (6 ) * 15 podiums – (14 , 1 ) Note: Until the 1999 World Championships and the 1994 Olympics, World Championship and Olympic races were included in the World Cup scoring system.

Overall record

:a. Classification is made according to FIS classification. :b. Includes individual and mass start races. :c. Incomplete due to lack of appropriate sources prior to 2001. Note: Until 1999 World Championships and 1994 Olympics, World Championship and Olympic races are part of the World Cup. Hence results from those races are included in the World Cup overall record.

References

Sources

* * * Myllylä, Mika: Riisuttu mestari. Tammi. 2001.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Myllyla, Mika 1969 births 2011 deaths Finnish male cross-country skiers Cross-country skiers at the 1992 Winter Olympics Cross-country skiers at the 1994 Winter Olympics Cross-country skiers at the 1998 Winter Olympics Olympic cross-country skiers for Finland Medalists at the 1994 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 1998 Winter Olympics Olympic medalists in cross-country skiing Olympic gold medalists for Finland Olympic silver medalists for Finland Olympic bronze medalists for Finland FIS Nordic World Ski Championships medalists in cross-country skiing Doping cases in cross-country skiing Finnish sportspeople in doping cases Accidental deaths in Finland People from Haapajärvi Skiers from North Ostrobothnia 20th-century Finnish sportsmen