Karel Tilga

Last updated
Karel Tilga
Karel Tilga 2023 (cropped).jpg
Tilga in 2023
Personal information
Born (1998-02-05) 5 February 1998 (age 27)
Valga, Estonia
Height6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Sport
CountryEstonia
Sport Athletics
Event(s) Decathlon, Heptathlon
College team Georgia Bulldogs
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)Decathlon: 8,681 (2023)
Heptathlon: 6,264 (2021)

Karel Tilga (born 5 February 1998) is an Estonian multi-event athlete who competes in the decathlon and indoors heptathlon. He was the NCAA championships both indoors and outdoors in 2021. He competed at the 2020 and 2024 Olympic Games.

Contents

Early life

Tilga was born in Valga [1] and grew up in Puka until the eight grade, when the family moved to Tartu. [2] He attended school at Tartu Kristjan Jaak Petersoni Gymnasium before enrolling at the University of Georgia, graduating in 2022. [1]

Career

Competing for Georgia Bulldogs (men), he won their fifth ever NCAA individual title (second in the heptathlon) by scoring a school record 6,264 to win the heptathlon at the 2021 NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships in March 2021, in Fayetteville, Arkansas. with the No. 2 all-time collegiate performance. [3] He scored a near 400 point-improvement on his decathlon lifetime best at the Specs Town Invitational in Athens, Georgia in April 2021 besting Garrett Scantling by just 8 points. Tilga's score reached the Olympic qualifying standard of 8350 points. [4] He then won the 2021 Outdoor NCAA Championships in the decathlon in Eugene, Oregon. [5] At the delayed 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan in 2021, he received 0 in pole vault and eventually finished 20th overall. [6] He did not finish the 2022 European Championships after also receiving 0 in pole vault.

Tilga finished fourth in the decathlon at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest, Hungary. [7] Tilga was selected as the best male athlete of April 2021 of the European Athletics Association (EAA) and the best male athlete of Estonia in 2023. [1]

He competed in Paris at the 2024 Summer Olympics in the decathlon, finishing in eleventh place overall. [8]

In September 2025, he competed in the decathlon at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan. [9]

International competitions

YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventResult
Representing Flag of Estonia.svg  Estonia
2017 European U20 Championships Grosseto 3rdDecathlon U208002 pts
2018 European Championships Berlin –Decathlon DNF
2021 Olympic Games Tokyo 20thDecathlon 7018 pts
2022 World Indoor Championships Belgrade 9thHeptathlon 5964 pts
European Championships Munich –Decathlon DNF
2023 World Championships Budapest 4thDecathlon 8681 pts
2024 Olympic Games Paris 11thDecathlon 8377 pts
2025 World Championships Tokyo 16thDecathlon 6073 pts

Personal bests

Information from World Athletics profile unless otherwise noted.

Outdoor

As of 20 June 2025
EventPerformanceLocationDatePoints
Decathlon — Budapest 25–26 August 20238,604 points
100 metres 10.84 (-0.1 m/s) Budapest 25 August 2023897 points
Long jump 7.69 m (25 ft 2+3⁄4 in) (0.0 m/s) Athens, Georgia 9 April 2021982 points
Shot put 16.59 m (54 ft 5 in) Ratingen 22 June 2024888 points
High jump 2.10 m (6 ft 10+1⁄2 in) Athens, Georgia 9 April 2021896 points
400 metres 48.49 Götzis 27 May 2023886 points
110 metres hurdles 14.65 (-0.1 m/s) Götzis 28 May 2023892 points
Discus throw 51.47 m (168 ft 10+1⁄4 in) Götzis 1 June 2025901 points
Pole vault 4.80 m (15 ft 8+3⁄4 in) Budapest 26 August 2023849 points
Javelin throw 73.36 m (240 ft 8 in) Tokyo 5 August 2021941 points
1500 metres 4:20.73 Budapest 26 August 2023807 points
Virtual Best Performance8,939 points

Indoor

As of 20 June 2025
EventPerformanceLocationDatePoints
Heptathlon — Fayetteville 11–12 March 20216,264 points
60 metres 7.07 Belgrade 18 March 2022858 points
Long jump 7.54 m (24 ft 8+3⁄4 in) Belgrade 18 March 2022945 points
Shot put 16.04 m (52 ft 7+1⁄4 in) Fayetteville 11 March 2021854 points
High jump 2.10 m (6 ft 10+1⁄2 in) Tartu 19 January 2018896 points
60 metres hurdles 8.24 Fayetteville 12 March 2021922 points
Pole vault 4.96 m (16 ft 3+1⁄4 in) Fayetteville 12 March 2021898 points
1000 metres 2:36.32 Fayetteville 12 March 2021915 points
Virtual Best Performance6,288 points

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Tilga, Karel". Eesti spordi biograafiline leksikon (ESBL) (in Estonian). 2023. Retrieved 5 August 2024.
  2. ↑ Suviste, Maarius (23 August 2023). "Esimesena medalita jäänud Puka vägilane: teised olid natuke paremad". Postimees (in Estonian). Retrieved 5 August 2024.
  3. ↑ "Karel Tilga - 2020-21 - Track & Field". University of Georgia Athletics. Retrieved 16 April 2025.
  4. ↑ "European Athletics | European Athletics". european-athletics.com.
  5. ↑ "NCAA Div. I Outdoor Championships". World Athletics. 9 June 2021. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  6. ↑ "Athletics – Men's Decathlon – Results" (PDF). IOC. 5 August 2021. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 August 2021.
  7. ↑ "World Championships". World Athletics. 19 August 2023. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  8. ↑ "Men's Decathlon es Results - Paris Olympic Games 2024 Athletics". Watch Athletics. 9 August 2024. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
  9. ↑ "World Athletics Championships, Tokyo 2025". World Athletics. 21 September 2025. Retrieved 22 September 2025.
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