Lidiya Skoblikova facts for kids
Lidiya Skoblikova in 1967
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| Full name | Lidiya Pavlovna Skoblikova | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 8 March 1939 Zlatoust, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union |
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| Height | 1.63 m (5 ft 4 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 59 kg (130 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Sport | Speed skating | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Burevestnik Chelyabinsk, Lokomotiv Moscow | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Lidiya Pavlovna Skoblikova (born March 8, 1939) is a famous retired speed skater and coach from Russia. She competed for the Soviet Union Olympic team in 1960, 1964, and 1968. Lidiya won an amazing six gold medals in total. This record is now shared with Dutch speed skater Ireen Wüst.
Lidiya Skoblikova was the first athlete ever to win six gold medals at the Winter Olympics. She was also the first to win four gold medals in a single Winter Olympic Games. She was the most successful athlete at the 1960 and 1964 Winter Olympics.
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Lidiya Skoblikova's Amazing Career
Lidiya Skoblikova was born in Zlatoust, a city in the Soviet Union. She trained with sports clubs called Burevestnik and Lokomotiv. When she was 19 in 1959, Lidiya joined the Soviet team. She finished third in the national championships that year.
Early Wins and Olympic Dreams
Lidiya also placed third at the world championships, winning two medals for different distances. The next year, she was on track to win the world title. She won the 500-meter race and came second in the 1500-meter race. However, she fell during the 1000-meter race.
Even with the fall, she still won a bronze medal by finishing third overall. Lidiya was now a favorite for the Olympics. She entered three events at the 1960 Winter Olympics. In her first race, the 1500 meters, she broke the world record and won a gold medal!
She just missed another medal in the 1000 meters, finishing fourth. Then, in the 3000 meters, she almost broke the world record again. This was enough to earn her a second gold medal.
Becoming a World Champion Skater
In the years that followed, Lidiya worked hard to become a world champion. In 1961, she won her third bronze medal in a row. In 1962, she earned a silver medal. Finally, in 1963, she won the world title!
The conditions in Karuizawa, Japan, were perfect for skating. Lidiya won all four races there. She even set a new world record in the 1000-meter race.
Olympic Glory in 1964
For the 1964 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Lidiya qualified for all four speed skating distances. She won every single one of them! This made her the first Winter Olympian to win four individual gold medals.
This amazing record was only broken later by Eric Heiden in 1980. He won all five speed skating events. Just two weeks after the 1964 Olympics, Lidiya repeated her success from Karuizawa. She won all four distances at the world championships again.
Later Career and Retirement
Lidiya Skoblikova took a break from speed skating for two seasons. She returned in 1967 and set a new world record in the 3000 meters. However, she didn't win a medal at the world championships that year, finishing fourth.
In 1968, she competed in her third and final Olympics. Her best result was sixth place in the 3000 meters. During her career, she won 15 national titles in different distances.
After she retired from skating in 1969, Lidiya moved to Moscow. She became a speed skating coach at the Lokomotiv sports club. She also studied and earned a degree in teaching. Later, she got a PhD in history and became a professor.
Lidiya became a member of the Soviet National Olympic Committee in 1983. She received a special silver Olympic award. For 12 years, she was the president of the Russian Skating Federation. In the 1990s, she was the head coach of the Russian team.
In 1996, she was honored by being added to the International Women's Sports Hall of Fame. In 2014, she was one of six people who carried the Olympic flag during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.
Lidiya Skoblikova's Family Life
Lidiya Skoblikova grew up in a working-class family. She had three sisters and one brother. She married Aleksandr Polozkov, who was also an athlete. He was a competitive racewalker and part of the national team.
Aleksandr was a talented coach and even trained Lidiya during some parts of her career. Their son, Georgy, born in 1965, also helped coach the national speed skating team in the 1990s. Georgy's first wife, Natalya Polozkova, was also a speed skater who competed in the Olympics.
Lidiya Skoblikova's Records
Lidiya Skoblikova set many impressive records during her career.
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See also
- List of multiple Olympic gold medalists at a single Games
- List of multiple Olympic gold medalists
