Paraskevi ("Voula") Patoulidou (; born 29 March 1965) is a Greek former athlete and politician. Born in the village of Tripotamos, Patoulidou competed in the 100 metres, 100 metres hurdles and in the long jump events. In 1992, she was the surprise winner of the Women's 100 m hurdles race at the Olympic Games in Barcelona, and she was voted the Best Balkan Athlete that same year. She was named the Greek Female Athlete of the Year for 1990 and 1992.
Her spouse was Dimitrios Zarzavatsidis.Η Βούλα Πατουλίδου συγκλονίζει: «Ο άντρας μου πέθανε και γύρισε» (in Greek). ekriti.gr. May 3, 2016. She served as the Deputy Regional Governor of Thessaloniki in the Region of Central Macedonia from 2014 to 2024.
Personal bests DateEventVenuePerformance10 February 199060 metresGhent, Belgium7.29s4 March 199060 m hurdlesGlasgow, Scotland8.08s14 July 1990100 metresTrikala, Greece11.27s6 August 1992100 m hurdlesBarcelona, Spain12.64s NR4 June 1995Long jumpChania, Greece6.71m
Barcelona 1992 On 5 August 1992, Patoulidou qualified for the final in the 100 m hurdles by improving her personal best from 12.96 (set in the qualifying round) to 12.88 seconds in the semi-finals. This success made her the first Greek woman ever to reach a track final in the Olympic Games.
One day later, the clear favourite of the 100 m hurdles final, Gail Devers of the United States, made a mistake and tripped on the last hurdle. Patoulidou took advantage and lunged her body forward for the finishing line. She crossed the line in 12.64 seconds, a Greek national record that still stands.
After 1992 After her Olympic gold medal Patoulidou decided to switch back to the long jump, her first love, believing that she had achieved as much as possible in the 100 m hurdles. She was vindicated when she participated in her second Olympic Games Final, in the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, finishing 10th.
In the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games, Patoulidou was a member of the 4 × 100 m relay team that reached the semi-finals and ended up in the 13th place. She was given an honorary place in the 4 × 100 m relay team in the Athens Olympic Games in 2004, participating for the fifth time in the Olympic Games at the age of 39.
She was the only woman amongst the five Greek sporting legends chosen to be the penultimate runners in the 2004 Olympic torch relay, along with Nick Galis, Mimis Domazos, Kakhi Kakhiashvili and Ioannis Melissanidis (see 2004 Summer Olympics Opening Ceremony). She was also one of the penultimate runners of the 1996 torch relay in Atlanta, joining Evander Holyfield and Janet Evans.
International competitions 1987Mediterranean GamesLatakia, Syria6thLong jump5.54m1988Olympic GamesSeoul, South Korea41st (h)100 m11.8515th (h)4 × 100 m relay45.441989European Indoor ChampionshipsThe Hague, Netherlands9th (h)60 m7.42World Indoor ChampionshipsBudapest, Hungary11th (sf)60 m7.471990European Indoor ChampionshipsGlasgow, United Kingdom15th (h)60 m7.447th (sf)60 m hurdles8.08Balkan GamesIstanbul, Turkey 1st100 m 1st100 m hurdlesEuropean ChampionshipsSplit, Yugoslavia13th (sf)100 m11.6211th (sf)100 m hurdles13.071991Mediterranean GamesAthens, Greece 1st100 m11.48 2nd100 m hurdles12.963rd relay44.77World ChampionshipsTokyo, Japan14th (sf)100 m11.5121st (h)100 m hurdles13.411992European Indoor ChampionshipsGenoa, Italy17th (h)60 m hurdles8.33Olympic GamesBarcelona, Spain 1st100 m hurdles12.64 (NR)1994European Indoor ChampionshipsParis, France17th (q)Long jump5.98 mBalkan GamesTrikala, Greece 1stLong jump1995World Indoor ChampionshipsBarcelona, Spain10thLong jump6.44 mWorld ChampionshipsGothenburg, Sweden –Long jumpNM1996European Indoor ChampionshipsStockholm, Sweden11thLong jump6.15 mOlympic GamesAtlanta, United States10thLong jump6.37 m1997World Indoor ChampionshipsParis, France –Long jumpNMWorld ChampionshipsAthens, Greece36th (q)Long jump5.90 m1999World ChampionshipsSeville, Spain13th (h)4 × 100 m relay44.682000European Indoor ChampionshipsGhent, Belgium20th (h)60 m7.39Olympic GamesSydney, Australia46th (h)100 m11.6513th (sf)4 × 100 m relay43.532001World Indoor ChampionshipsLisbon, Portugal17th (sf)60 m7.342002European Indoor ChampionshipsVienna, Austria18th (h)60 m7.48
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