Kamila Skolimowska

Kamila Skolimowska was a Polish hammer thrower who became the youngest Olympic champion in the event at the age of 17. She was born in Warsaw to a sporty family, as her father was a weightlifter and her mother a discus thrower. She started her career at a young age, winning the European Junior Championships in 1997 and the World Youth Championships in 1999. She achieved her greatest success at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, where she threw 71.16 metres to win the gold medal and set an Olympic record. She also won two silver medals at the European Championships in 2002 and 2006, and competed at three more Olympic Games, finishing fourth in 2004, ninth in 2008, and posthumously sixth in 2012. She also set the Polish record of 76.83 metres in 2007. Skolimowska died unexpectedly in 2009, during a training camp in Portugal, from a pulmonary embolism. She was 26 years old. Her death shocked the sporting world and prompted many tributes and condolences. She was buried with military honors at the Powązki Military Cemetery in Warsaw. Her legacy lives on through the Kamila Skolimowska Foundation, which supports young athletes and organizes memorial events in her honor.