Faina Grigorievna Veleva-Melnik (; ; ; 9 June 1945 – 16 December 2016) was a Soviet discus thrower, a

1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and officially branded as Munich 1972 (; ), were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. It was the ...

champion in the discus event. During her career she set 11 world records.

Career

Melnik was Jewish, and was born in Bakota, Khmelnytskyi, Ukraine. At the

, she broke the Olympic record three times, and set a world record at 66.62 metres. She had already broken the world record, at the

1971 European Athletics Championships The 10th (X) European Athletics Championships were held from 10 August to 15 August 1971 in the Olympic Stadium of Helsinki, the capital of Finland. Contemporaneous reports on the event were given in the Glasgow Herald. Men's results ...

, representing the then Soviet Union. In 1976 she had her best ever discus throw of 70.50 m, but finished only fourth at the

1976 Summer Olympics The 1976 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Montreal 1976 (), were an international multi-sport event held from July 17 to August 1, 1976, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Montreal ...

. At those Olympics she also competed in the shot put and finished tenth. She failed to reach the final in the discus event at the 1980 Games.Faina Melnik
Sports-reference.com. Continuing to throw after the 1980 Olympics, she set the masters world record in the W35 division that has stood since 1980. Melnik graduated from the Moscow State University of Medicine and Dentistry and later worked as a dentist and athletics coach in Moscow. Her trainees include

Natalya Lisovskaya Natalya Venediktovna Lisovskaya (; born 16 July 1962) is a Russian former athlete who competed mainly in shot put for the Soviet Union. Lisovskaya trained at Spartak (sports society), Spartak in Moscow. Career Born in Alegazy, Lisovskaya compet ...

and Svetlana Krivelyova. Melnik was married to Velko Velev, a Bulgarian discus thrower who also competed at the 1976 and 1980 Olympics. She later became an inspiration for Miss Trunchbull in the

Roald Dahl Roald Dahl (13 September 1916 – 23 November 1990) was a British author of popular children's literature and short stories, a poet, screenwriter and a wartime Flying ace, fighter ace. His books have sold more than 300 million copies ...

children's book '' Matilda''.

References

External links

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Sporting Heroes bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Melnik, Faina 1945 births 2016 deaths Soviet female discus throwers Soviet female shot putters Soviet Jews Jewish Ukrainian sportspeople Spartak (sports society) sportspeople Olympic athletes for the Soviet Union Olympic gold medalists for the Soviet Union Ukrainian female discus throwers Ukrainian female shot putters Athletes (track and field) at the 1972 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1976 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1980 Summer Olympics Jewish track and field athletes World record setters in athletics (track and field) People from Bakota, Ukraine Russian people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent European Athletics Championships medalists Medalists at the 1972 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists in athletics (track and field) Burials in Troyekurovskoye Cemetery Universiade medalists in athletics (track and field) Track & Field News Athlete of the Year winners FISU World University Games gold medalists for the Soviet Union Medalists at the 1973 Summer Universiade Sportspeople from Khmelnytskyi Oblast Soviet Athletics Championships winners

Career

See also

References

External links