Galina Alexeyevna Kulakova (russian: Галина Алексеевна Кулакова, born 29 April 1942) is a

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

former cross-country skier, arguably the best skier on distances shorter than 10 km in the early 1970s. She won four

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...

golds, two individual in

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...

and two relay golds in

and

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 ...

. She was the most successful athlete at the 1972 Winter Olympics, along with Ard Schenk of the Netherlands. Competing in the

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

, she won three individual golds, two in 1974 and one in 1970, and also two relay golds in those years. Kulakova also won the 10 km event at the Holmenkollen ski festival in 1970 and 1979. Galina Kulakova was also 39 times ''Champion of the USSR'' between 1969 and 1981. For her achievements she was awarded

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration ...

and ''Badge of Honor''. She was also awarded the silver ''Olympic Order'' in 1984 by the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swis ...

President

Juan Antonio Samaranch Juan Antonio Samaranch y Torelló, 1st Marquess of Samaranch (Catalan: ''Joan Antoni Samaranch i Torelló'', ; 17 July 1920 – 21 April 2010) was a Spanish sports administrator under the Franco regime (1973–1977) who served as the seventh P ...

. Galina Kulakova ended her sports career in 1982.

Drug controversy

At the

1976 Winter Olympics The 1976 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XII Olympic Winter Games (german: XII. Olympische Winterspiele, french: XIIes Jeux olympiques d'hiver) and commonly known as Innsbruck 1976 ( bar, Innschbruck 1976, label= Austro-Bavarian), was a ...

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; bar, Innschbruck, label=Austro-Bavarian ) is the capital of Tyrol and the fifth-largest city in Austria. On the River Inn, at its junction with the Wipp Valley, which provides access to the Brenner Pass to the south, it had a p ...

, Kulakova finished third in the 5 km event, but was disqualified due to a positive test for banned substance

ephedrine Ephedrine is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is often used to prevent low blood pressure during anesthesia. It has also been used for asthma, narcolepsy, and obesity but is not the preferred treatment. It is of unclear benefit in ...

. She claimed that this was a result of using the nasal spray that contained the substance. Both the

International Ski Federation The ''Fédération internationale de ski et de snowboard'' (FIS; en, International Ski and Snowboard Federation) is the highest international governing body for skiing and snowboarding. Founded on 2 February 1924 in Chamonix, France during the ...

and the

allowed her to compete in the 10 km and the 4 × 5 km relay.

Cross-country skiing results

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

Olympic Games

* 8 medals – (4 gold, 2 silver, 2 bronze)

World Championships

* 10 medals – (5 gold, 3 silver, 2 bronze)

World Cup

Season standings

Team podiums

* 1 podium Note: Until the 1999 World Championships, World Championship races were included in the World Cup scoring system.

References

External links

*
Holmenkollen winners since 1892
– click Vinnere for downloadable pdf file {{DEFAULTSORT:Kulakova, Galina 1942 births Living people People from Udmurtia Cross-country skiers at the 1968 Winter Olympics Cross-country skiers at the 1972 Winter Olympics Cross-country skiers at the 1976 Winter Olympics Cross-country skiers at the 1980 Winter Olympics Doping cases in cross-country skiing Holmenkollen Ski Festival winners Olympic cross-country skiers of the Soviet Union Olympic gold medalists for the Soviet Union Olympic silver medalists for the Soviet Union Olympic bronze medalists for the Soviet Union Russian female cross-country skiers Russian sportspeople in doping cases Soviet female cross-country skiers Olympic medalists in cross-country skiing Recipients of the Olympic Order Competitors stripped of Winter Olympics medals FIS Nordic World Ski Championships medalists in cross-country skiing Medalists at the 1976 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 1980 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 1972 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 1968 Winter Olympics Sportspeople from Udmurtia