IaafNews25 Nov 2018


1980 Olympic javelin silver medallist Gunba dies

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Soviet javelin thrower Saida Gunba (© IOC)

The IAAF is deeply saddened to hear that 1980 Olympic javelin silver medallist Saida Gunba died on Saturday (24) at the age of 59.

Born in the Georgian capital Tbilisi in 1959, Gunba took up athletics at the age of 14 and represented the Soviet Union in international competitions as a teenager. She won the national title in 1978 and 1979 and went on to represent the host nation at the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow at the age of 20.

Having set a PB of 68.28m earlier that year, she came close to that mark in the Olympic final to take silver with 67.76m.

After retiring from international competition, she remained involved in the sport and worked as a coach in Sukhumi.

IAAF

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