Sara Kolak

Sara Kolak (born 22 June 1995) is a Croatian track and field athlete who competes in the javelin throw. She is an Olympic champion and won the gold medal in the javelin throw event at the 2016 Summer Olympics.^[1] Kolak is also a European Championships bronze medallist and European U23 champion. She holds the Croatian record with a personal best throw of 68.43 m, set in 2017. It also ranks her tenth on the world all-time list. Kolak is a three-time Olympian and competed at the 2016, 2020 and 2024 Summer Olympics.

Sara Kolak

Kolak in 2016
Personal information
Nationality	Croatian
Born	(1995-06-22) 22 June 1995 (age 29) Ludbreg, Croatia
Height	1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Weight	74 kg (163 lb)
Sport
Country	Croatia
Sport	Track and field
Event	Javelin throw
Achievements and titles
Personal bests	NR 68.43 (2017)
Medal record Olympic Games 2016 Rio de Janeiro Javelin throw European Championships 2016 Amsterdam Javelin throw European U23 Championships 2017 Bydgoszcz Javelin throw World Junior Championships 2014 Eugene Javelin throw European Junior Championships 2013 Rieti Javelin throw European Throwing Cup 2025 Nicosia Javelin Throw European Winter Throwing Cup 2017 Gran Canaria Javelin Throw 2016 Arad Javelin Throw 2014 Leiria Javelin Throw

Career

Kolak made her junior international debut at the 2012 World Junior Championships in Barcelona. She won bronze medals at the 2013 European Junior Championships in Rieti and 2014 World Junior Championships in Eugene.^[2][3][4] Kolak made her senior international debut at the 2014 European Championships in Zürich. That same year, she underwent surgery for a shoulder injury and was sidelined for 15 months.^[5] She won the bronze medal in the javelin throw at the 2016 European Championships in Amsterdam.^[2]

Kolak won the gold medal in the women's javelin throw event at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, where she also set a new national record with a throw of 66.18 metres.^[5] She bested her record the following year with a 68.43 m throw at Athletissima in Lausanne.^[6] She won the gold medal in the javelin throw at the 2017 European U23 Championship in Bydgoszcz and placed fourth in the javelin throw at the 2017 World Championships in London.

Following the 2017 World Championships, Kolak struggled with an elbow injury. The Croatian Olympic Committee approved a $150,000 funding for her surgery,^[7] which was carried out in Minnesota. After the surgery, she underwent rehabilitation of the ligaments and returned to competition in the summer of 2019,^[7] placing seventh at the 2019 World Championships in Doha. In August 2019, she relocated from Slovenia to Norway in order to be coached by two-time Olympic champion Andreas Thorkildsen.^[8] Kolak competed in the javelin throw event at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, but failed to qualify for the final.^[9] She placed eleventh at the 2024 European Championships in Rome and fourth in the javelin throw event at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.^[10]

International competitions

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Event	Notes
Representing  Croatia
2012	World Junior Championships	Barcelona, Spain	23rd (q)	Javelin throw	48.15 m
2013	European Junior Championships	Rieti, Italy	3rd	Javelin throw	57.79 m
2014	World Junior Championships	Eugene, United States	3rd	Javelin throw	55.74 m
	European Championships	Zürich, Switzerland	21st (q)	Javelin throw	52.51 m
2016	European Championships	Amsterdam, Netherlands	3rd	Javelin throw	63.50 m
	Olympic Games	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	1st	Javelin throw	66.18 m
2017	European U23 Championships	Bydgoszcz, Poland	1st	Javelin throw	65.12 m
	World Championships	London, United Kingdom	4th	Javelin throw	64.95 m
2019	World Championships	Doha, Qatar	7th	Javelin throw	62.28 m
2021	Olympic Games	Tokyo, Japan	–	Javelin throw	NM
2022	World Championships	Eugene, United States	–	Javelin throw	NM
	European Championships	Munich, Germany	14th (q)	Javelin throw	57.31 m
2023	World Championships	Budapest, Hungary	23rd (q)	Javelin throw	55.89 m
2024	European Championships	Rome, Italy	11th	Javelin throw	55.90 m
	Olympic Games	Paris, France	4th	Javelin throw	63.40 m
(q) Indicates overall position in qualifying round

Awards

• Order of Danica Hrvatska with face of Franjo Bučar - 2016 ^[11]