Vladimir Parfenovich facts for kids

Parfenovich at the 1980 Olympics
Quick facts for kids Personal information
Born	2 December 1958 (1958-12-02) (age 66) Minsk, Byelorussian SSR, Soviet Union
Height	192 cm
Weight	90 kg
Sport
Sport	Canoe sprint
Club	Krasnoye Znamya Minsk
Medal record Representing the  Soviet Union Olympic Games Gold 1980 Moscow K-1 500 m Gold 1980 Moscow K-2 500 m Gold 1980 Moscow K-2 1000 m World Championships Silver 1978 Belgrade K-1 500 m Gold 1979 Duisburg K-1 500 m Gold 1979 Duisburg K-2 500 m Gold 1981 Nottingham K-1 500 m Gold 1981 Nottingham K-2 500 m Gold 1981 Nottingham K-2 1000 m Gold 1982 Belgrade K-1 500 m Gold 1982 Belgrade K-2 500 m Gold 1982 Belgrade K-2 1000 m Gold 1983 Tampere K-1 500 m Silver 1983 Tampere K-2 500 m Silver 1983 Tampere K-2 1000 m

Vladimir Vladimirovich Parfenovich (born December 2, 1958) is a famous athlete from Belarus. He was an amazing sprint canoer who won many medals. After his sports career, he also became involved in politics.

A Champion Canoer

Vladimir Parfenovich competed for the Soviet Union in the sport of canoe sprint. He was incredibly successful at the 1980 Moscow Olympics. There, he made history by winning gold medals in all three events he entered.

Olympic Gold Medals

• K-1 500 meters (single kayak, 500m race)
• K-2 500 meters (double kayak, 500m race)
• K-2 1000 meters (double kayak, 1000m race)

World Championship Success

Besides his Olympic wins, Parfenovich also earned many medals at the ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships. He won a total of twelve medals. Nine of these were gold, and three were silver. His gold medals came in various races, including K-1 500m, K-2 500m, and K-2 1000m, between 1979 and 1983.

Life After Competition

Parfenovich stopped competing after learning that the Soviet Union would not participate in the 1984 Olympics. He then worked as an instructor for the Sports Ministry in Belarus. He also served in the police force. From 1995 to 2007, he led the Canoe-Kayak Federation of Belarus. He was also a member of the Belarus Olympic Committee. Later, he coached canoers in Russia. In 2013, he became the head coach of the Russian team.

Entering Politics

In 2000, Vladimir Parfenovich decided to enter the world of politics. He was elected to the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus, which is like their parliament.

A Voice for Change

He joined a group in parliament called Respublika. This group often disagreed with the government at the time. In June 2004, Parfenovich and two other members of parliament took a stand. They went on a hunger strike. They felt that the leader of the parliament was not letting them discuss or vote on important changes they wanted to make to election rules. They ended their strike later that month when parliament voted against their ideas.

See also

In Spanish: Vladimir Parfenovich para niños