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Iolanda Balas Soter former great athlete, exceptional technician and manager, died in the Romanian capital city. This high jump legend and outstanding personality of Romanian sport was born in Romania, in Timisoara on December 12, 1936. In her own country in 1956 she took the first of her 14 world records and then improved it from 1.75 to 1.91 in 1961, again in Bucharest. Her record has remained unbeaten for 10 years.
Balas also twice climbed the Olympic podium, in Rome 1960 and Tokyo1964. After retiring from competition in 1967, Balaș married her former coach János Sőtér, and taught physical education in Bucharest. In 1990 she was elected President of the Romanian Athletic Federation, a post she held until 2005. In 2000 she was nominated among the top 10 athletes of the twentieth century.
