Education
Lillak finished fourth in the 1982 European Athletics Championships, which were held in Athens.
Lillak finished fourth in the 1982 European Athletics Championships, which were held in Athens.
On July 29, 1982, she threw a new world record in Helsinki of 72.40 meters. The record lasted until September when Greek thrower Sofia Sakorafa reached 74.20 meters. The following year, Lillak again broke the world record, throwing 74.76 meters in Tampere on June 13.
This distance remained a world record until June 1985, and also stood as a national record for Finland until 1999, when the javelin type was altered and the former records were wiped clean.
The whole season was a success for Lillak, who threw over 70 meters in 16 separate competitions and didn"t lose a single time. Although Lillak had only taken part in three competitions earlier in the year, she still managed to earn an Olympic silver medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California.
Medals did not materialise at the 1986 European Athletics Championships (fourth) or the 1987 World Championships in Athletics (sixth). She failed in an attempt to reach the Olympic podium a second time at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, where Lillak did not pass the qualifying round.
She participated in five competitions in 1989, but no major events.
In the 1991 World Championships in Athletics, Lillak did not pass the qualifying round (in fact, she did not throw over 62 meters the entire season). She retired from athletics in 1992 and became a masseuse.