Reijo Vähälä
Finnish high jumper
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Reijo Untamo Vähälä (7 March 1946 – 27 September 2024[1][2]) was a Finnish high jumper. He placed second in men's high jump at the 1969 European Athletics Championships.
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | 7 March 1946 Alajärvi, Finland | ||||||||||||||
| Died | 27 September 2024 (aged 78) | ||||||||||||||
| Height | 188 cm (6 ft 2 in) | ||||||||||||||
| Weight | 80 kg (180 lb) | ||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||
| Sport | Athletics | ||||||||||||||
Event | High jump | ||||||||||||||
| Club | Tampereen Pyrintö Alajärven Ankkurit | ||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | |||||||||||||||
| Personal best | High jump: 2.17 m (1969) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||
Career
In 1966 Vähälä won both the Finnish championship (2.04 m) and the Finnish under-21 championship (2.01 m) in men's high jump.[3] In 1969 he only placed third at the Finnish championships and was not considered a potential medalist at the European Championships in Athens, but in the championship final he improved his Finnish record of 2.13 m twice, clearing first 2.14 m and then 2.17 m.[3][4] Two other jumpers, Valentin Gavrilov of the Soviet Union and Erminio Azzaro of Italy, also cleared 2.17 m, and the medals were decided on countback with Vähälä winning a surprising silver.[4]
Vähälä won his second Finnish national outdoor title in 1970 with a jump of 2.12 m; in addition, he was Finnish indoor champion in 1968 (2.03 m) and 1969 (2.00 m).[3] He represented Finland again at the 1970 European Indoor Championships, where he placed 10th, and the 1971 European Championships, where he failed to qualify for the final.[3]
