Mika Myllylä
Template:Short description Script error: No such module "Infobox".Template:Template otherScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". Mika Kristian Myllylä (12 September 1969 – 5 July 2011[1]) was a Finnish cross-country skier who competed from 1992 to 2005. He won six medals at the Winter Olympics, earning one gold (1998: 30 km), one silver (1994: 50 km), and four bronzes (1994: 30 km, 4 × 10 km; 1998: 10 km, 4 × 10 km).
Myllylä also won a total of nine medals at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships, winning four golds (1997: 50 km, 1999: 10 km, 30 km, 50 km), three silvers (10 km + 15 km combined pursuit: 1997, 1999; 4 × 10 km relay: 1997), and two bronzes (10 km: 1995, 1997).
He was on his way to become one of the greatest stars in cross-country skiing history, until he was caught doping in the Finnish 2001 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships scandal for taking hydroxyethyl starch (HES), a blood plasma expander usually used to cover up the use of erythropoietin (EPO) in athletes. The scandal also affected five other Finnish skiers, including Jari Isometsä and Harri Kirvesniemi. Myllylä received a two-year suspension from the FIS as a result. In connection with a 2011 court case, Myllylä gave a sworn statement where he admitted using EPO in the 1990s, during his career.[2]
After the suspension Myllylä tried to return to skiing, but failed to come back to the international level despite winning a few Finnish championships. Myllylä retired from the skiing sports in 2005. In the following years he was involved in alcohol-related problems which were extensively covered in Finnish tabloid papers.[3] On 5 July 2011, Myllylä was found dead at his home in Kokkola. The official police investigation concluded that his death was the result of an accident, and ruled out the possibility of foul play and suicide.[4][5]
Cross-country skiing results
All results are sourced from the International Ski Federation (FIS).[6]
Olympic Games
- 6 medals – (1 gold, 1 silver, 4 bronze)
| Year | Age | 10 km | Pursuit | 30 km | 50 km | 4 × 10 km relay |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 22 | 14 | 20 | 34 | — | — |
| 1994 | 24 | 6 | 4 | Bronze | Silver | Bronze |
| 1998 | 28 | Bronze | 6 | Gold | — | Bronze |
World Championships
- 9 medals – (4 gold, 3 silver, 2 bronze)
| Year | Age | 10 km | 15 km | Pursuit | 30 km | 50 km | Sprint | 4 × 10 km relay |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 21 | 39 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1993 | 23 | 17 | — | 18 | 23 | — | — | 4 |
| 1995 | 25 | Bronze | — | 4 | 4 | — | — | — |
| 1997 | 27 | Bronze | — | Silver | 10 | Gold | — | Silver |
| 1999 | 29 | Gold | — | Silver | Gold | Gold | — | 5 |
| 2001 | 31 | — | DNS | DNF | — | — | — | DSQ |
World Cup
Season titles
- 1 title – (1 Long Distance)
| Season | |
| Discipline | |
| 1997 | Long Distance |
Season standings
| Season | Age | Overall | Long Distance | Sprint | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 20 | — | — | — | |
| 1991 | 21 | — | — | — | |
| 1992 | 22 | 32 | — | — | |
| 1993 | 23 | 34 | — | — | |
| 1994 | 24 | 4 | — | — | |
| 1995 | 25 | 8 | — | — | |
| 1996 | 26 | 14 | — | — | |
| 1997 | 27 | Script error: No such module "sort". | Script error: No such module "sort". | 7 | |
| 1998 | 28 | 7 | Script error: No such module "sort". | 13 | |
| 1999 | 29 | Script error: No such module "sort". | Script error: No such module "sort". | 8 | |
| 2000 | 30 | 39 | 29<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[a] | 26<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[a] | — |
| 2001 | 31 | 33 | — | — | |
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Individual podiums
- 10 victories
- 25 podiums
| No. | Season | Date | Location | Race | Level | Place |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1993–94 | 9 January 1994 | Template:Flagicon Kavgalovo, Russia | 15 km Individual C | World Cup | 3rd |
| 2 | 15 January 1994 | Template:Flagicon Oslo, Norway | 10 km Individual F | World Cup | 3rd | |
| 3 | 14 February 1994 | Template:Flagicon Lillehammer, Norway | 30 km Individual F | Olympic Games<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[1] | 3rd | |
| 4 | 27 February 1994 | 50 km Individual C | Olympic Games<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[1] | 2nd | ||
| 5 | 12 March 1994 | Template:Flagicon Falun, Sweden | 30 km Individual C | World Cup | 2nd | |
| 6 | 1994–95 | 11 March 1995 | Template:Flagicon Thunder Bay, Canada | 10 km Individual C | World Championships<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[1] | 3rd |
| 7 | 1995–96 | 16 December 1995 | Template:Flagicon Santa Caterina, Italy | 10 km Individual C | World Cup | 3rd |
| 8 | 13 January 1996 | Template:Flagicon Nové Město, Czech Republic | 15 km Individual C | World Cup | 3rd | |
| 9 | 1996–97 | 7 December 1996 | Template:Flagicon Davos, Switzerland | 10 km Individual C | World Cup | 1st |
| 10 | 4 January 1997 | Template:Flagicon Kavgalovo, Russia | 30 km Individual F | World Cup | 1st | |
| 11 | 19 January 1997 | Template:Flagicon Lahti, Finland | 30 km Individual C | World Cup | 2nd | |
| 12 | 24 February 1997 | Template:Flagicon Trondheim, Norway | 10 km Individual C | World Championships<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[1] | 3rd | |
| 13 | 25 February 1997 | 10 km + 15 km Pursuit C/F | World Championships<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[1] | 2nd | ||
| 14 | 2 March 1997 | 50 km Individual C | World Championships<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[1] | 1st | ||
| 15 | 1997–98 | 3 January 1998 | Template:Flagicon Kavgalovo, Russia | 30 km Individual F | World Cup | 1st |
| 16 | 8 January 1998 | Template:Flagicon Ramsau, Austria | 15 km Individual C | World Cup | 2nd | |
| 17 | 1998–99 | 5 January 1999 | Template:Flagicon Otepää, Estonia | 15 km Individual C | World Cup | 2nd |
| 18 | 14 February 1999 | Template:Flagicon Seefeld, Austria | 10 km Individual F | World Cup | 1st | |
| 19 | 19 February 1999 | Template:Flagicon Ramsau, Austria | 30 km Individual F | World Championships<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[1] | 1st | |
| 20 | 22 February 1999 | 10 km Individual C | World Championships<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[1] | 1st | ||
| 21 | 23 February 1999 | 10 km + 15 km Pursuit C/F | World Championships<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[1] | 2nd | ||
| 22 | 28 February 1999 | 50 km Individual C | World Championships<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[1] | 1st | ||
| 23 | 13 March 1999 | Template:Flagicon Falun, Sweden | 30 km Individual C | World Cup | 3rd | |
| 24 | 1999–2000 | 2 February 2000 | Template:Flagicon Trondheim, Norway | 10 km Individual F | World Cup | 1st |
| 25 | 2000–01 | 20 December 2000 | Template:Flagicon Davos, Switzerland | 30 km Individual C | World Cup | 1st |
Team podiums
- 6 victories – (6 RL)
- 15 podiums – (14 RL, 1 TS)
| No. | Season | Date | Location | Race | Level | Place | Teammate(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1991–92 | 28 February 1992 | Template:Flagicon Lahti, Finland | 4 × 10 km Relay F | World Cup | 3rd | Hartonen / Räsänen / Isometsä |
| 2 | 1993–94 | 22 February 1994 | Template:Flagicon Lillehammer, Norway | 4 × 10 km Relay C/F | Olympic Games<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[1] | 3rd | Kirvesniemi / Räsänen / Isometsä |
| 3 | 1994–95 | 18 December 1994 | Template:Flagicon Sappada, Italy | 4 × 10 km Relay F | World Cup | 2nd | Repo / Hartonen / Isometsä |
| 4 | 15 January 1995 | Template:Flagicon Nové Město, Czech Republic | 4 × 10 km Relay C | World Cup | 1st | Hietamäki / Isometsä / Kirvesniemi | |
| 5 | 5 February 1995 | Template:Flagicon Falun, Sweden | 4 × 10 km Relay F | World Cup | 2nd | Räsänen / Hartonen / Isometsä | |
| 6 | 1995–96 | 10 December 1995 | Template:Flagicon Davos, Switzerland | 4 × 10 km Relay C | World Cup | 1st | Hietamäki / Repo / Isometsä |
| 7 | 14 January 1996 | Template:Flagicon Nové Město, Czech Republic | 4 × 10 km Relay C | World Cup | 1st | Repo / Kirvesniemi / Isometsä | |
| 8 | 3 February 1996 | Template:Flagicon Seefeld, Austria | 12 × 1.5 km Team Sprint F | World Cup | 3rd | Isometsä | |
| 9 | 1996–97 | 24 November 1996 | Template:Flagicon Kiruna, Sweden | 4 × 10 km Relay C | World Cup | 1st | Repo / Kirvesniemi / Isometsä |
| 10 | 8 December 1996 | Template:Flagicon Davos, Switzerland | 4 × 10 km Relay C | World Cup | 1st | Isometsä / Repo / Kirvesniemi | |
| 11 | 28 February 1997 | Template:Flagicon Trondheim, Norway | 4 × 10 km Relay C/F | World Championships<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[1] | 2nd | Kirvesniemi / Räsänen / Isometsä | |
| 12 | 1997–98 | 6 March 1998 | Template:Flagicon Lahti, Finland | 4 × 10 km Relay C/F | World Cup | 1st | Kirvesniemi / Repo / Isometsä |
| 13 | 1998–99 | 14 March 1999 | Template:Flagicon Falun, Sweden | 4 × 10 km Relay C/F | World Cup | 2nd | Immonen / Kirvesniemi / Repo |
| 14 | 1999–00 | 19 December 1999 | Template:Flagicon Davos, Switzerland | 4 × 10 km Relay C | World Cup | 2nd | Immonen / Kirvesniemi / Isometsä |
| 15 | 2000–01 | 26 November 2000 | Template:Flagicon Beitostølen, Norway | 4 × 10 km Relay C/F | World Cup | 2nd | Immonen / Kirvesniemi / Repo |
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Note: <templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>1 Until the 1999 World Championships and the 1994 Olympics, World Championship and Olympic races were included in the World Cup scoring system.
Overall record
| Result | Distance Races<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[a] | Sprint | Individual Events |
Team Events | All Events | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ≤ 10 km<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[b] | ≤ 15 km<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[b] | ≤ 30 km<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[b] | ≥ 30 km<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[b] | Pursuit | Team Sprint | Relay<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[c] | ||||
| 1st place | 4 | – | 4 | 2 | – | – | 10 | – | – | 10 |
| 2nd place | – | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | – | 7 | – | 1 | 8 |
| 3rd place | 3 | 3 | 2 | – | – | – | 8 | – | 2 | 10 |
| Podiums | 7 | 5 | 8 | 3 | 2 | – | 25 | – | 3 | 28 |
| Top 10 | 12 | 11 | 16 | 4 | 4 | – | 47 | – | 3 | 50 |
| Points | 23 | 23 | 23 | 6 | 6 | – | 81 | – | 4 | 85 |
| Others | 1 | 4 | 4 | 1 | – | – | 10 | – | – | 10 |
| Starts | 24 | 27 | 27 | 7 | 6 | – | 91 | – | 4 | 95 |
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- a. <templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>1 Classification is made according to FIS classification.
- b. <templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>1 <templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>2 <templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>3 <templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>4 Includes individual and mass start races.
- c. <templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>1 Incomplete due to lack of appropriate sources prior to 2001.
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Note: Until 1999 World Championships and 1994 Olympics, World Championship and Olympic races are part of the World Cup. Hence results from those races are included in the World Cup overall record.
See also
References
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Sources
- Template:FIS cross-country skier
- Template:Sports-Reference
- Myllylä, Mika: Riisuttu mestari. Tammi. 2001.
External links
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- Pages with script errors
- 1969 births
- 2011 deaths
- Finnish male cross-country skiers
- Cross-country skiers at the 1992 Winter Olympics
- Cross-country skiers at the 1994 Winter Olympics
- Cross-country skiers at the 1998 Winter Olympics
- Olympic cross-country skiers for Finland
- Medalists at the 1994 Winter Olympics
- Medalists at the 1998 Winter Olympics
- Olympic medalists in cross-country skiing
- Olympic gold medalists for Finland
- Olympic silver medalists for Finland
- Olympic bronze medalists for Finland
- FIS Nordic World Ski Championships medalists in cross-country skiing
- Doping cases in cross-country skiing
- Finnish sportspeople in doping cases
- Accidental deaths in Finland
- People from Haapajärvi
- Skiers from North Ostrobothnia
- 20th-century Finnish sportsmen