Vladimir Parfenovich facts for kids
Parfenovich at the 1980 Olympics
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| Born | 2 December 1958 (age 66) Minsk, Byelorussian SSR, Soviet Union |
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| Height | 192 cm | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 90 kg | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Sport | Canoe sprint | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Krasnoye Znamya Minsk | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Vladimir Parfenovich (born December 2, 1958) is a famous athlete from Belarus. He was a top sprint canoer and later became involved in politics. He is known for winning many gold medals in canoeing.
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Who is Vladimir Parfenovich?
Vladimir Parfenovich was born in Minsk, which was then part of the Soviet Union. He grew up to be a very tall and strong athlete, standing at 192 cm (about 6 feet 3 inches) and weighing 90 kg (about 198 pounds). He became a professional in canoe sprint, a sport where athletes race canoes or kayaks over short distances.
What are his sports achievements?
Vladimir Parfenovich is one of the most successful sprint canoeists ever. He competed for the Soviet Union and won many important races.
Olympic Games Success
At the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, Parfenovich made history. He was the first canoer to win gold medals in all three events he entered.
- He won the K-1 500 m race. This means he raced a single-person kayak over 500 meters.
- He won the K-2 500 m race. Here, he raced a two-person kayak with a teammate over 500 meters.
- He also won the K-2 1000 m race, again in a two-person kayak, but over a longer distance of 1000 meters.
World Championships Medals
Besides the Olympics, Parfenovich also won many medals at the ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships. These are major international competitions for canoe and kayak racers.
- He earned nine gold medals at these championships.
- He also won three silver medals.
- His gold medals were in K-1 500 m, K-2 500 m, and K-2 1000 m events between 1979 and 1983.
Life After Racing
Parfenovich stopped competing in sports after learning that the Soviet Union would not participate in the 1984 Olympics. After his racing career, he worked as an instructor for the Sport 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 and became the head coach of the Russian team in 2013.
What about his political career?
In 2000, Vladimir Parfenovich decided to enter politics. He was elected to the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus. This is like being a member of parliament in Belarus.
Joining the Opposition
He joined a group in parliament called Respublika. This group did not agree with the government led by Alexander Lukashenko. They wanted to make changes to how things were done.
Hunger Strike for Change
On June 3, 2004, Parfenovich and two other members of parliament, Valery Fralou and Siarhiej Skrabiec, started a hunger strike. They did this because they felt the leader of the parliament was not letting them discuss or vote on their ideas for election rules. They stopped their strike on June 21, when parliament voted against their ideas.
See also
In Spanish: Vladimir Parfenovich para niños
