Kaija Marja Mustonen (born 4 August 1941 in Helsinki) is a former speed skater from Finland.

Kaija Mustonen
Mustonen at the 1968 Olympics
Personal information
Born (1941-08-04) 4 August 1941 (age 83)
Helsinki, Finland
Height166 cm (5 ft 5 in)
Weight52–54 kg (115–119 lb)
Sport
SportSpeed skating
ClubHelsingin Luistinkiitäjät, Helsinki
Medal record
Representing  Finland
Women's speed skating
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 1968 Grenoble 1500 m
Silver medal – second place 1968 Grenoble 3000 m
Silver medal – second place 1964 Innsbruck 1500 m
Bronze medal – third place 1964 Innsbruck 1000 m
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place 1964 Kristinehamn 1500 m
Bronze medal – third place 1967 Deventer 1500 m
Bronze medal – third place 1967 Deventer 3000 m
Bronze medal – third place 1968 Helsinki 3000 m

After winning silver and bronze at the 1964 Winter Olympics of Innsbruck, Mustonen went on to win gold and silver at the 1968 Winter Olympics of Grenoble. This was the only Finnish gold medal at those games and the last Olympic gold for Finland in speed skating up to at least 2015. Her Olympic performance was acknowledged by naming her Finnish female athlete of the year in 1964 and 1968.[1]

She competed in ten World Allround Championships from 1958 to 1968 (every year except 1959), but never won a medal in the final classification, a fourth place in 1964 being her best result. She did win four distance medals though, all bronze, in the days when there was not yet a separate world championship for each distance. Nationally, she won seven all-around titles between 1962 and 1968.[1]

Personal records

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Personal records
Distance Time Place Date
500 m 45.6 Inzell 2 Mar 1968
1,000 m 1:31.5 Inzell 10 Mar 1968
1,500 m 2:20.1 Inzell 2 Mar 1968
3,000 m 5:00.7 Inzell 10 Mar 1968
Mini
combination
190.367 Inzell 2/3 Mar 1968
Best times in Finland
Distance Time Place Date
500 m 46.8 Rovaniemi 21 Mar 1968
1,000 m 1:35.0 Rovaniemi 22 Mar 1968
1,500 m 2:28.8 Helsinki-Kallio 27 Feb 1968
3,000 m 5:14.8 Helsinki-Pirkkola 28 Jan 1968
Mini
combination
197.016 Rovaniemi 22/23 Mar 1968

References

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  1. ^ a b Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Kaija Mustonen". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 3 December 2016.

Further reading

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  • Eng, Trond. All Time International Championships, Complete Results 1889 - 2002. Askim, Norway: WSSSA Skøytenytt, 2002.
  • Kolkka, Sulo. Suomen Luisteliiton Vuosikirja, Pikaluistelija 1967 (in Finnish). Helsinki, Finland: E.o. Savolaisen Kirjapaino ky, 1967.
  • Peltoperä, Pentti. Suomen Luisteliiton Vuosikirja 1965 (in Finnish). Helsinki, Finland: E.o. Savolaisen Kirjapaino ky, 1965.
  • Peltoperä, Pentti. Suomen Luisteliiton Vuosikirja 1966 (in Finnish). Helsinki, Finland: E.o. Savolaisen Kirjapaino ky, 1966.
  • Santala, Martti en Pajunen, Aarno. Pikaluistelija 1/1968 (in Finnish). Helsinki, Finland: Suomen Luisteliitto, 1968.
  • Teigen, Magne. Komplette resultater, Internasjonale Mesterskap 1889-1989 (in Norwegian). Veggli, Norway: WSSSA Skøytenytt, 1989.
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