Aleksandr Medved
| Olympic medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men's freestyle wrestling | ||
Competitor for  Soviet Union |
||
| Gold | 1964 Tokyo | Light heavyweight |
| Gold | 1968 Mexico City | Heavyweight |
| Gold | 1972 Munich | Super heavyweight |
| World Championships | ||
| Bronze | 1961 Yokohama | +87 kg |
| Gold | 1962 Toledo | 97 kg |
| Gold | 1963 Sofia | 97 kg |
| Silver | 1965 Manchester | 97 kg |
| Gold | 1966 Toledo | 97 kg |
| Gold | 1967 Bucharest | +97 kg |
| Gold | 1969 Mar del Plata | +100 kg |
| Gold | 1970 Edmonton | +100 kg |
| Gold | 1971 Sofia | +100 kg |
Alexander Vasiliyevich Medved' (Belarusian: Алякса́ндр Васíлевiч Мядзве́дзь, Russian: Алекса́ндр Васи́льевич Медве́дь; born September 16, 1937 in Bila Tserkva, Ukrainian SSR) is a famous Soviet/Belarussian wrestler. He is considered by most to be the best freestyle wrestler of all time. He was the first person ever to win three gold medals in freestyle wrestling. FILA recognizes Medved as The Greatest Wrestler of the 20th Century in Freestyle (with Alexander Karelin being the greatest in Greco-Roman). He has written two books on the sport.
[edit] Legacy
Medved' is one of the most well-known Soviet athletes and to this day his image continues to inspire others. He was the flagbearer for the Belarusian Olympic team on several occasions including the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. He also performed the Judge's Oath at the 1980 Summer Olympics. It should also be noted that "Medved" is the Russian word for "bear" which perfectly fits his image.
[edit] Present
Today he lives in Belarus and is the Head of the Inter-University Department of Sport Excellence of the Belarusian State University of Informatics and Radioelectronics and also Vice-president of the Belarus Olympic Committee. Alexander Medved' is also the Olympic coach for the Belarusian freestyle wrestling team.
His non-Olympic awards include:
- World championships: 7 times (1962-63, 1966-67, 1969-71)
- European championships: 3 times (1966, 1968, 1972)
[edit] References
V. L. Golubev (1978) (in Russian). Alexander Medved. Heroes of the Olympic Games. Moscow: Fizkultura i sport. http://www.sportlib.ru/books/borba/medved/.
- Biography From the National Olympic Committee of the Republic of Belarus
- 1937 births
- Living people
- People from Bila Tserkva
- Belarusian sport wrestlers
- Soviet sport wrestlers
- Olympic wrestlers of the Soviet Union
- Wrestlers at the 1964 Summer Olympics
- Wrestlers at the 1968 Summer Olympics
- Wrestlers at the 1972 Summer Olympics
- Olympic gold medalists for the Soviet Union
- Burevestnik athletes
- Olympic medalists in wrestling
- Recipients of the Olympic Order
