Elsa Torikka

Elsa Torikka was an Ingrian Finn who moved from the Soviet Union to Finland in the early 1930s. She took up the javelin throw after World War II and had her greatest successes during the 1950s. She represented Finland internationally nine times, most notably at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, where she placed 17th. Domestically, she was a four-time national champion (1954, 1955, 1957, and 1958) and was runner-up thrice (1952, 1953, and 1956). After marrying American hammer thrower Bob Backus, she moved to the United States and began competing in American national championships, placing third in 1959, fourth in 1963, and sixth in 1961, the year that she became an American citizen. Although Torikka and Backus later divorced, she continued to live in the United States.

Personal Best: JT – 45.72 (1958).