 She won her first international Gold medal at the 1971 European Athletics Championships as a member of the 4 × 100 m relay team, where she placed 4th in the 100 metre final.She took a silver as the anchor of the 4 × 100 m relay squad in the 1974 European Championships in Rome.Helten set a world record for 100 meters in June 1976, with an 11.04 clocking; she competed for West Germany at the 1976 Summer Olympics held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada in the 100 metres, winning a bronze medal behind teammate Annegret Richter and East German Renate Stecher.