Vasily Ivanovich Alekseev (1942-2011) - Soviet weightlifter, coach, Honored Master of Sports of the USSR, 2-time Olympic champion (1972, 1976), 8-time world champion (1970-1977), 8-time European champion (1970-1975, 1977- 1978), 7-time USSR champion (1970-1976).
There are many interesting facts in the biography of Vasily Alekseev, which will be discussed in this article.
So, before you is a short biography of Vasily Alekseev.
Biography of Vasily Alekseev
Vasily Alekseev was born on January 7, 1942 in the village of Pokrovo-Shishkino (Ryazan region). He was brought up in the family of Ivan Ivanovich and his wife Evdokia Ivanovna.
Childhood and youth
In his free time from school, Vasily helped his parents to harvest the forest for the winter. The teenager had to lift and move heavy logs.
Once, the young man, together with his peers, organized a competition where the participants had to squeeze the axle of the trolley.
Alekseev's opponent was able to do it 12 times, but he himself did not succeed. After this incident, Vasily set out to become strong.
The schoolboy trained regularly under the leadership of a physical education teacher. Soon he was able to build muscle mass, as a result of which not a single local competition could do without his participation.
At the age of 19, Alekseev successfully passed the exams at the Arkhangelsk Forestry Institute. In this period of his biography, he was awarded the first category in volleyball.
At the same time, Vasily showed great interest in athletics and weightlifting.
After graduation, the future champion wanted to get another higher education, graduating from the Shakhty branch of the Novocherkassk Polytechnic Institute.
Later Alekseev worked for some time as a foreman at the Kotlas Pulp and Paper Mill.
Weightlifting
At the dawn of his sports biography, Vasily Ivanovich was a student of Semyon Mileiko. After that, his mentor for some time was the famous athlete and Olympic champion Rudolf Plükfelder.
Soon, Alekseev decided to part with his mentor, due to a number of disagreements. As a result, the guy began to train on his own.
An interesting fact is that at that time of the biography, Vasily Alekseev developed his own system of physical activity, which many athletes would later adopt.
Later, the athlete had the opportunity to play for the USSR national team. However, when he tore off his back at one of the training sessions, doctors categorically forbade him to lift heavy objects.
Nevertheless, Alekseev did not see the meaning of life without sports. Barely recovering from his injury, he continued to engage in weightlifting and in 1970 broke the records of Dube and Bednarsky.
After that, Vasily set a record in triathlon - 600 kg. In 1971, at one competition, he managed to set 7 world records in one day.
In the same year, at the Olympic Games held in Munich, Alekseev set a new record in triathlon - 640 kg! For his achievements in sports, he was awarded the Order of Lenin.
At the World Championships in the United States, Vasily Alekseev impressed the audience by squeezing a 500 pound barbell (226.7 kg).
After that, the Russian hero set a new record in the total triathlon - 645 kg. An interesting fact is that no one can beat this record so far.
Over the years of his biography, Alekseev set 79 world records and 81 USSR records. In addition, his fantastic achievements have been repeatedly included in the Guinness Book.
After leaving their great sport, Vasily Ivanovich took up coaching. In the period 1990-1992. he was the coach of the Soviet national team, and then the CIS national team, which won 5 gold, 4 silver and 3 bronze medals at the 1992 Olympic Games.
Alekseev is the founder of the sports club "600", designed for schoolchildren.
Personal life
Vasily Ivanovich got married at the age of 20. Olimpiada Ivanovna became his wife, with whom he lived for 50 long years.
In his interviews, the athlete has repeatedly said that he owes much to his wife for his victories. The woman was constantly next to her husband.
Olympiada Ivanovna was not only a wife for him, but also a massage therapist, cook, psychologist and reliable friend.
The Alekseev family had 2 sons - Sergei and Dmitry. In the future, both sons will receive legal education.
Shortly before his death, Alekseev took part in the television sports project "Big Races", coaching the Russian national team "Heavyweight".
Death
In early November 2011, Vasily Alekseev began to worry about his heart, as a result of which he was sent for treatment to the Munich Cardiology Hospital.
After 2 weeks of unsuccessful treatment, the Russian weightlifter passed away. Vasily Ivanovich Alekseev died on November 25, 2011 at the age of 69.
Photo by Vasily Alekseev
