 Born in Demmin, in the East German Bezirk Neubrandenburg, as Ilona Schoknecht she finished fifth at the 1976 Montreal Olympics with 20.54m.In 1977, she was disqualified after she tested positive for anabolic steroids at the European Cup meeting in Helsinki, where she dominated her event with a superlative 21.20.The International Amateur Athletics Federation suspended Slupianek for 12 months, a penalty that ended two days before the 1978 European championships in Prague.