Alexander Medved

Alexander Vasiliyevich Medved ( _be. Алякса́ндр Васíлевiч Мядзве́дзь; _ru. Алекса́ндр Васи́льевич Медве́дь) (born September 16, 1937 in Belaya Tserkov, Ukrainian SSR) is a famous Soviet/Russian [http://original.britannica.com/eb/article-9002557/Aleksandr-Vasilyevich-Medved] /Belarussian wrestler. He is considered by some to be the best freestyle wrestler of all time. He was the first person ever to win three gold medals in freestyle wrestling and as of 2008 he is still the only one to do so (Buvaisar Saitiev matched this record in 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China). FILA recognizes Medved as The Greatest Wrestler of the 20th Century in Freestyle (with Alexander Karelin being the greatest in Greco-Roman). He has written two books on the sport.

Legacy

Medved is one of the most well-known Russian athletes and to this day his image continues to inspire others. He was the flagbearer for the Belarusian Olympic team on several occasions including the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. He also performed the Judge's Oath at the 1980 Summer Olympics. It should also be noted that "Medved" is the Russian word for "bear" which perfectly fits his image.

Present

Today he lives in Belarus and is the Head of the Inter-University Department of Sport Excellence of the Belarusian State University of Informatics and Radioelectronics and also Vice-president of the Belarus Olympic Committee. Alexander Medved is also the Olympic coach for the Belarusian freestyle wrestling team.

His non-Olympic awards include:
* World championships: 7 times (1962-63, 1966-67, 1969-71)
* European championships: 3 times (1966, 1968, 1972)

References

* [http://www.medved.by Alexander Medved Personal Site] (in Russian)
* [http://www.filahalloffame.com/medved.html Profile and short biography] in the FILA International Wrestling Hall of Fame
* [http://www.noc.by/eng/pressa7_eng.html Biography] From the National Olympic Committee of the Republic of Belarus