Vasily Alekseyev facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Vasily Alekseyev

Alekseyev circa 1970
Personal information
Full name	Vasily Ivanovich Alekseyev
Nationality	Russian
Born	(1942-01-07)7 January 1942 Pokrovo-Shishkino, Ryazan Oblast, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Died	25 November 2011(2011-11-25) (aged 69) Munich, Germany
Height	1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)
Weight	160 kg (353 lb)
Sport
Country	Soviet Union
Sport	Olympic weightlifting
Event(s)	+ 110 kg
Club	Trud Rostov oblast Trud Ryazan
Medal record Men's weightlifting Representing the  Soviet Union Olympic Games Gold 1972 Munich +110 kg Gold 1976 Montreal +110 kg World Weightlifting Championships Total Gold 1970 Columbus +110 kg Gold 1971 Lima +110 kg Gold 1972 Munich +110 kg Gold 1973 Havana +110 kg Gold 1974 Manila +110 kg Gold 1975 Moscow +110 kg Gold 1976 Montreal +110 kg Gold 1977 Stuttgart +110 kg European Weightlifting Championships Total Gold 1970 Szombathely +110 kg Gold 1971 Sofia +110 kg Gold 1972 Constanţa +110 kg Gold 1973 Madrid +110 kg Gold 1974 Verona +110 kg Gold 1975 Moscow +110 kg Gold 1977 Stuttgart +110 kg Gold 1978 Havířov +110 kg Representing the Trud Sports Society USSR Weightlifting Championships Total Bronze 1968 Luhansk +102.5 kg Gold 1970 Vilnius +110 kg Gold 1971 Moscow +110 kg Gold 1972 Tallinn +110 kg Gold 1973 Donetsk +110 kg Gold 1974 Tbilisi +110 kg Gold 1975 Vilnius +110 kg Gold 1976 Karaganda +110 kg Summer Spartakiad of the USSR Total Gold 1971 Moscow +110 kg Gold 1975 Vilnius +110 kg Cups of the USSR Gold 1970 Vilnius +110 kg Clean & Press Gold 1970 Vilnius +110 kg Snatch Gold 1970 Vilnius +110 kg Clean & Jerk Gold 1970 Vilnius +110 kg Total Gold 1972 Sochi +110 kg Clean & Jerk Gold 1972 Sochi +110 kg Total Gold 1974 Zaporizhia +110 kg Snatch Gold 1974 Zaporizhia +110 kg Clean & Jerk Gold 1974 Zaporizhia +110 kg Total

Vasily Ivanovich Alekseyev (Russian: Василий Иванович Алексеев; born January 7, 1942 – died November 25, 2011) was a famous weightlifter from the Soviet Union. He was incredibly strong, setting 80 world records and 81 Soviet records in weightlifting. He also won two Olympic gold medals, one in 1972 and another in 1976.

Vasily Alekseyev's Amazing Career

Vasily Alekseyev started weightlifting when he was 18. He trained with coach Rudolf Plyukfelder until 1968, then he trained by himself. Vasily wasn't naturally super big like some other heavy weightlifters. He worked hard to gain strength by adding weight to his body.

In January 1970, Vasily set his first world record. Later that year, at the World Weightlifting Championship in Columbus, Ohio, USA, he became the first person to lift 500 pounds (about 227 kg) in the "clean and jerk" lift during a competition. People were amazed by how easily he lifted such heavy weights.

This was just the start! Between 1970 and 1977, Vasily Alekseyev set 80 world records. The Soviet government even gave him extra money each time he broke a world record. Because of this, he would often increase his records by just a tiny bit (like 1.1 pounds or 0.5 kg) to set new ones more often. For eight years, he was unbeatable, holding both the World Championship and European Championship titles. He was also the first person to lift a total of over 600 kg in the three main weightlifting events combined.

Many people hoped he would be the first to lift 600 pounds in the clean and jerk. But because he only increased his records by small amounts, he got older before he could reach that huge goal.

Vasily's performance at the 1980 Moscow Olympics was not what he hoped for. By then, he was training alone. He tried to lift a very heavy weight in the "snatch" event, but he couldn't do it. This meant he scored zero points for that lift. After the Moscow Olympics, he stopped competing in weightlifting.

Life After Competing

In 1987, Vasily Alekseyev was chosen to represent his home area, the Ryazan District, in the Soviet Union's government.

From 1990 to 1992, Vasily worked as a coach. He was a great coach! Under his guidance, the Unified Team (which included athletes from several former Soviet countries) won ten medals in weightlifting at the 1992 Summer Olympics. Five of those were gold medals!

Vasily Alekseyev lived in the city of Shakhty from 1966. He passed away on November 25, 2011, in a clinic in Germany. He was 69 years old and had serious heart problems. The Russian Weightlifting Federation called him a "Soviet sports legend" and "one of the strongest people in the world." He is remembered by his wife, Olimpiada, and his sons, Sergey and Dmitry.

Awards and Lasting Impact

Vasily Alekseyev was so famous that a well-known Russian singer, Vladimir Vysotsky, wrote a song about him in 1971 called "Song about weightlifter."

In 1975, Vasily was featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated magazine, with the title "World's Strongest Man." In 1999, in Greece, he was recognized as the best sportsman of the 20th century.

He received many important awards, including:

• Order of Lenin (1972)
• Order of Friendship of Peoples
• Order of the Badge of Honour (1970)
• Order of the Red Banner of Labour (1972)

In 1993, he was added to the International Weightlifting Federation Hall of Fame, which honors the greatest weightlifters of all time.

In Shakhty, the city where he lived for many years, there is a street and a park named after him. A monument in his honor was also put up in 2014.

Vasily Alekseyev's Best Lifts

Here are some of Vasily Alekseyev's personal best lifts:

• Snatch: 190.0 kg (419 lbs) in 1977.
• Clean and press: 236.5 kg (521 lbs) in 1972.
• Clean and jerk: 256.0 kg (564 lbs) in 1977.
• Total (Clean and press + Snatch + Clean and jerk): 645.0 kg in 1972. This was an official world record at the time.
• Total (Snatch + Clean and jerk): 445.0 kg in 1977.

See also

In Spanish: Vasili Alekséyev para niños