Name: Jessica Zelinka
Born: Sept. 3, 1981 in London, Ont.
Sport: Heptathlon
What’s her story?
We Canadians probably wouldn’t know much about heptathlon—the two-day event that features 100m hurdles, 200m, 800m, javelin, shot put, long jump and high jump—were it not for Jessica Zelinka. She put the sport on the map here.
Zelinka got hooked on pentathlon after trying and loving all the events at track and field day in Grade 4 at her elementary school. As a junior in 2000, she broke the Canadian record in heptathlon. She’s been Canada’s biggest star in the discipline nearly her entire career.
Her career-best finish at the Olympics came in 2008, when she placed fifth. At London 2012, Zelinka came a disappointing seventh, and has since changed up her training schedule. It’s paid off: She’s coming off a silver medal win at the 2014 Commonwealth Games.
Best result
Zelinka’s best-ever result came at the Pan Am Games in 2007, when she won gold.
Biggest competition
Now this is exciting: Zelinka’s biggest competition in heptathlon is fellow Canadian Brianne Theisen-Eaton. Currently ranked No. 1 in the world and owner of the best-ever points total in this event in Canadian history, Theisen-Eaton, a 26-year-old from Saskatchewan, has earned two world championship silver medals in heptathlon since the last Summer Olympics.
Here’s an interesting fact
Zelinka’s husband, Nathaniel Miller, is a former national team water polo player and a three-time Pan Am bronze medallist. Zelinka and Miller, who met at the University of Calgary, had a daughter in 2009. (And Zelinka came back in time for the 2012 Olympics, with abs that looked like they could grate cheese.)
These Games will be quite the family affair for Zelinka: Her dad, Richard, is serving as an official.
Prediction
Expect a podium finish from the veteran Canadian.
