Ruth Beitia
| Ruth Beitia | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Parliament of Cantabria | |
|
Assumed office 2011 |
|
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Ruth Beitia Vila 1 April 1979 Santander, Cantabria, Spain |
| Nationality | Spanish |
| Political party | People's Party of Cantabria |
| Occupation | Athlete, physical education teacher |
Ruth Beitia Vila (Spanish pronunciation: [rut ˈβeitja]; born 1 April 1979) is a Spanish high jumper and politician who is the reigning Olympic champion in the women's high jump.
Beitia first broke the Spanish record in 1998, jumping 1.89 m. She raised the record progressively up to 2.02 m, the current Spanish record, which she achieved on 4 August 2007. She is the first, and thus far, only Spanish woman to have jumped higher than two metres.
Beitia's first senior international appearance was at the 2002 European Athletics Championships in Munich, where she finished 11th. At the 2003 World Championships in Paris, she also finished 11th. At the 2004 Athens Olympics she failed to reach the finals. In 2005 she won the silver medal at the 2005 European Indoor Championships in Madrid but at the world championships at Helsinki 2005 she failed to reach the finals. In 2006 she won the bronze medal at the World Indoor Athletics Championships in Moscow.
In 2009, she won the silver medal at the 2009 European Athletics Indoor Championships in Turin. At the 2009 World Championships in Athletics in Berlin, she placed fifth. In 2012 she won the gold medal at the European Championships in Helsinki and at the 2012 London Olympics she was fourth, after which she retired from competition.
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