 Puică in 1982 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1950-07-29)29 July 1950 (age 74) Iași, Romania[1] |
| Height | 168 cm (5 ft 6 in) |
| Weight | 54 kg (119 lb) |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Athletics |
| Event | 1000–3000 m |
| Achievements and titles | |
| Personalbest(s) | 1000 m – 2:31.5 (1986) 1500 m – 3:57.22 (1984) 3000 m – 8:27.83 (1985)[2] |
Medal record | |
Maricica Puică (néeLuca on 29 July 1950) is a retiredRomanianmiddle-distance runner. She is the1984 Olympic champion in the 3,000 metres. One of the greatest female middle-distance runners of the 1980s, she also twice won theWorld Cross Country Championship (1982, 1984) and broke theworld record for the mile in 1982.[2]
Puică was born inIași,Romania and competed at the1976 Montreal Olympics and the1980 Moscow Olympics, where she finished seventh in the 1,500 m. In 1978, she placed fourth in the 3,000 m at the European Championships. In March 1982, she won theIAAF World Cross Country Championships. In August, she won a silver medal in the 3,000 m at the European Championships behindSvetlana Ulmasova. She also finished fourth in the 1,500 m final. A month later in September, she brokeMary Decker's world mile record of 4:18.08 with 4:17.44 inRieti.
Puică missed the 1983 World Championships due to injury, but returned in early 1984 to win her second World Cross Country Championship title. Then in the Summer, she won the inaugural 3,000 m title at the1984 Los Angeles Olympics, a race remembered more for the collision ofMary Decker andZola Budd. At those Games, she also won a bronze medal in the 1,500 m behind Italy'sGabriella Dorio and Romanian teammateDoina Melinte.[1]
In July 1986, at the London Grand Prix, she brokeTatyana Kazankina's world 2,000 m record of 5:28.72, with a time of 5:28.69. At the1986 European Championships in Stuttgart, she won a silver medal in the 3,000 m, behindOlga Bondarenko of the Soviet Union. She was also fifth in the 1,500 m final. 1987 began with her winning a bronze medal in the 3,000 m at the World Indoor Championships in Indianapolis, finishing behind the Soviet pair ofTatyana Samolenko and Bondarenko. Later that year, aged 37, she won a silver medal in the 3000 m at theWorld Championships in Rome, again behind Samolenko.[2]
Puica competed at her fourth and final Olympic Games inSeoul 1988, where she dropped out of her 3000 m heat with just 200 metres to go.[1]
In 1989, she spoke on Romanian television in support of the revolutionaries fighting against the regime ofNicolae Ceaușescu.
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Representing Romania | |||||
| 1976 | Olympic Games | Montreal, Canada | heats | 1500 m | 4:12.62 |
| 1978 | World Cross Country Championships | Glasgow,Scotland | 3rd | ||
| European Championships | Prague, Czech Republic | 4th | 3000 m | 8:40.9 | |
| 1980 | Olympic Games | Moscow, Russia | 7th | 1500 m | 4:01.26 |
| 1981 | World Cup | Rome,Italy | 2nd | 3000 m | 8:55.80 |
| 1982 | European Indoor Championships | Milan, Italy | 2nd | 3000 m | 8:54.26 |
| World Cross Country Championships | Rome, Italy | 1st | |||
| European Championships | Athens, Greece | 4th | 1500 m | 3:59.31 | |
| 2nd | 3000 m | 8:33.33 | |||
| 1984 | World Cross Country Championships | New York, United States | 1st | ||
| Olympic Games | Los Angeles, United States | 3rd | 1500 m | 4:04.15 | |
| 1st | 3000 m | 8:35.96 | |||
| 1986 | European Championships | Stuttgart, Germany | 5th | 1500 m | 4:03.90 |
| 2nd | 3000 m | 8:35.92 | |||
| 1987 | World Indoor Championships | Indianapolis, United States | 3rd | 3000 m | 8:47.92 |
| World Championships | Rome, Italy | 2nd | 3000 m | 8:39.45 | |
| 1988 | Olympic Games | Seoul, South Korea | heats | 3000 m | DNF |
| 1989 | European Indoor Championships | The Hague, Netherlands | 3rd | 3000 m | 9:15.49 |
| Records | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Women's mile world record holder 9 September 1982 – 21 August 1985 | Succeeded by |
| Sporting positions | ||
| Preceded by | Women's 3000 m Best Year Performance 1981 | Succeeded by |
