Yuriy Sedykh

Yuriy Sedykh

Personal information
Native name	Russian:Ю́рий Гео́ргиевич Седы́х Ukrainian:Юрій Георгійович Сєдих
Full name	Yuriy Georgiyevich Sedykh
Nationality	Soviet Union
Born	(1955-06-11)11 June 1955 Novocherkassk,Rostov Oblast,Russian SFSR,Soviet Union
Died	14 September 2021(2021-09-14)(aged 66) Pontoise,France
Years active	1976–1995
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Weight	110 kg (243 lb)
Spouse(s)	1.Lyudmila Kondratyeva. 2.Natalya Lisovskaya
Sport
Country	Soviet Union(1976–1991)
Sport	Athletics
Event	Hammer throw
Club	Burevestnik Kiev Avangard Kiev CSKA Moscow
Turned pro	1976
Retired	1995
Achievements and titles
Personalbests	86.74 m (1986)WR
Medal record RepresentingtheSoviet Union Olympic Games 1976 Montreal Hammer 1980 Moscow Hammer 1988 Seoul Hammer World Championships 1991 Tokyo Hammer 1983 Helsinki Hammer European Championships 1978 Prague Hammer 1982 Athens Hammer 1986 Stuttgart Hammer

Yuriy Georgiyevich Sedykh(Russian:Ю́рий Гео́ргиевич Седы́х,Ukrainian:Юрій Георгійович Сєдих) (11 June 1955 – 14 September 2021) was atrack and fieldathlete who represented theSoviet Unionfrom 1976 to 1991 in thehammer throw.He was aEuropean,WorldandOlympicChampion, and holds theworld recordwith a throw of 86.74 m in1986.

Career

Sedykh was born inNovocherkassk,Russia, and grew up inNikopol,Ukraine.He took up track and field in 1967 under coach Vladimir Ivanovich Volovik.He trained atBurevestnikand later at theArmed Forces sports societyinKyiv,attaining the rank ofmajorin the Soviet Army. From 1972 he was coached byAnatoliy Bondarchuk,who is widely regarded as one of the best hammercoachesin the world. In 1973 he became a member of the USSR National Junior Team.

Competition

Sedykh won gold medals at the1976 Summer Olympicsand1980 Summer Olympicsas well as taking first at the 1986Goodwill Games.He set aworld recordof 86.74 m at the1986 European championshipsin Stuttgart, where he won his third title in a row. He also came first at the1991 World Championships.Only Sedykh andSergey Litvinovhave thrown over 86 meters in the history of the sport (Ivan Tsikhan's 86.73 m throw in 2005 was annulled by the IAAF in April 2014 due to doping sanctions).

Sedykh's 1986 world record has been noted for its longevity, and for dating from "a time when track and field was starting to realize the scale of performance-enhancing drug use" (AP).In his 2020 bookThe Rodchenkov Affair,Russian doping whistleblowerGrigory Rodchenkovstated that Sedykh was a heavy user ofsteroids;Sedykh denied allegations of doping.

Coaching

Sedykh coached French hammer throwers, for exampleNicolas Figère(80.88 m).

Technique

Unlike many throwers, Sedykh employed three rotations rather than four. He often practised with lighter and heavier hammers. His technique was based on 'pushing' the ball left and letting the hammer turn him.

Personal life

Previously married to Soviet 100 m Olympic championLyudmila Kondratyeva,Sedykh subsequently married former Soviet shot-putter and world-record holderNatalya Lisovskayawho won gold in the1988 Olympics.They had one daughter, Alexia, born in 1993, who came first in thegirls' hammer throwat the2010 Summer Youth OlympicsinSingapore.Sedykh and his family moved to Paris, France, where he taught strength and conditioning at higher education level. Sedykh died in France on 14 September 2021 at the age of 66.The urn with the ashes was buried in theFederal Military Memorial Cemetery's Pantheon of Defenders of the Fatherland "inMytishchi,Russia.

Further reading

• E. G. Bogatyrev (1982).Youri Sedykh.Heroes of the Olympic Games (in Russian). Moscow:Fizkultura i sport.

External links

• Yuriy SedykhatWorld Athletics