# Erki Nool

Erki Nool (born 25 June 1970) is an Estonian retired decathlete and former politician.

## Life and career

Nool was born on 25 June 1970 in Võru. He grew up in an impoverished environment in the southern part of Võru. His father was a worker in a furniture factory and his mother was in charge of the finances of a school. There were six children, with Erki the third youngest. When he was 13, from the suggestion of his father he moved to a sports-focused boarding school, where he could eat a free warm meal three times a day.
In those days the economy was in a poor condition. When traveling to over-seas competitions, they didn't get their own cabin in the cruise ship, but instead just slept in the hallways and then competed and trained the next day. They also didn't have indoor athletics training facilities for winter. Nool was brought to tears when he was gifted a new, pristine pair of sneakers.
After Estonia became independent on 20 August 1991, Nool was vocal about his dream of competing in the Olympics as part of the Estonian team. He took part in the Barcelona 1992 Summer Olympics decathlon but he ended up having to stop and pull out. Little by little he developed and by the mid-1990s he was among the top athletes in decathlon. In September 1997 he founded his own sports club and in 1998–2009 he organized international decathlon competition "Reval Hotels Cup".
When he won gold for decathlon at the 1998 Budapest European Championships, he became a sports hero. Two years later, when he won the gold medal for decathlon in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, he became a national hero. Although Nool did not place first in any individual event, his total score was the highest. There was a dramatic moment in discus throw, but luckily the competition referee decided to over-rule a judge, who had red-flagged his last and only valid attempt due to alleged step-out. The reinstatement of his 43.66-metre third throw sparked unsuccessful counter-protests from other teams. Nool took gold ahead of the Czech Roman Šebrle and American Chris Huffins.
He has been voted as Estonia's sexiest man and in the 2000s the most popular Estonian. In 2006, Nool participated as a celebrity contestant on the first season of Tantsud tähtedega, an Estonian version of Dancing with the Stars. His professional dancing partner was Ave Vardja.
In 2005–2017, Erki Nool was the Vice Chairman of the EOC Athletes Commission and 2007–2011 member of the European Athletics Development Committee. 2008–2012, he was also member of the executive committee of the Estonian Olympic Committee.
On 4 March 2007, Nool was elected to the Estonian Parliament, the Riigikogu, representing the Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica. He has since left politics and now focuses on his real estate business and athletics school, with 450 students.
His son Robin Nool (born in 1998) competed in pole vault with a record of 5.40 m.

## Achievements

| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Result |
| Representing Estonia ||||||
| 1992 | Olympic Games | Barcelona, Spain | — | Decathlon | DNF |
| 1994 | European Championships | Helsinki, Finland | 10th | Decathlon | 7953 pts |
| 1995 | World Championships | Gothenburg, Sweden | 4th | Decathlon | 8268 pts |
| 1995 | World Indoor Championships | Barcelona, Spain | 7th | Heptathlon | 5887 pts |
| 1996 | European Indoor Championships | Stockholm, Sweden | 1st | Heptathlon | 6188 pts |
| 1996 | Olympic Games | Atlanta, United States | 6th | Decathlon | 8543 pts |
| 1997 | World Championships | Athens, Greece | 6th | Decathlon | 8413 pts |
| 1997 | World Indoor Championships | Paris, France | 2nd | Heptathlon | 6213 pts |
| 1998 | European Championships | Budapest, Hungary | 1st | Decathlon | 8667 pts |
| 1998 | IAAF World Combined Events Challenge | | 1st | Decathlon | 25,967 pts |
| 1999 | World Indoor Championships | Maebashi, Japan | 2nd | Heptathlon | 6374 pts |
| 1999 | World Championships | Seville, Spain | 14th | Decathlon | 7568 pts |
| 2000 | European Indoor Championships | Ghent, Belgium | 3rd | Heptathlon | 6200 pts |
| 2000 | Olympic Games | Sydney, Australia | 1st | Decathlon | 8641 pts |
| 2000 | IAAF World Combined Events Challenge | | 1st | Decathlon | 26,089 pts |
| 2001 | World Indoor Championships | Lisbon, Portugal | 5th | Heptathlon | 6074 pts |
| 2001 | World Championships | Edmonton, Canada | 2nd | Decathlon | 8815 pts |
| 2001 | IAAF World Combined Events Challenge | | 2nd | Decathlon | 25,839 pts |
| 2001 | Goodwill Games | Brisbane, Australia | 3rd | Decathlon | 8323 pts |
| 2002 | European Indoor Championships | Vienna, Austria | 3rd | Heptathlon | 6084 pts |
| 2002 | European Championships | Munich, Germany | 2nd | Decathlon | 8438 pts |
| 2003 | World Championships | Paris, France | — | Decathlon | DNF |
| 2004 | Olympic Games | Athens, Greece | 8th | Decathlon | 8235 pts |
| 2004 | World Indoor Championships | Budapest, Hungary | 5th | Heptathlon | 6093 pts |
| 2005 | European Indoor Championships | Madrid, Spain | 12th | Heptathlon | 5712 pts |

## Personal bests

Information from World Athletics profile unless otherwise noted.
    As of May 26, 2024
| Event | Performance | Location | Date | Points |
| Decathlon | 8,815 points | Edmonton | August 7, 2001 | 8,815 points |
| 100 meters | 10.34 (+3.2 m/s) w | Haapsalu | August 16, 1997 | 1,013 points |
| Long jump | 8.22 m (26 ft 11+1⁄2 in) (+3.0 m/s) w | Tallinn | June 15, 1996 | 1,117 points |
| Shot put | 15.11 m (49 ft 6+3⁄4 in) | Sydney | September 27, 2000 | 796 points |
| High jump | 2.05 m (6 ft 8+1⁄2 in) | Lipetsk | February 9, 1991 | 850 points |
| 400 meters | 46.23 | Sydney | August 6, 2001 | 997 points |
| 110 meters hurdles | 14.37 (-0.1 m/s) | Götzis | Jun3 4, 2000 | 927 points |
| Discus throw | 45.28 m (148 ft 6+1⁄2 in) | Arles | June 8, 2003 | 773 points |
| Pole vault | 5.60 m (18 ft 4+1⁄4 in) | Tallinn | July 5, 1998 | 1100 points |
| Javelin throw | 71.91 m (235 ft 11 in) | New York City | July 20, 1998 | 919 points |
| 1500 meters | 4:29.48 | Sydney | September 28, 2000 | 748 points |
| Virtual Best Performance | Virtual Best Performance | Virtual Best Performance | Virtual Best Performance | 9,240 points |