Vasili Kuznetsov (athlete)
Vasily Dmitrievich Kuznetsov (Russian Василий Дмитриевич Кузнецов, English transcription Vasiliy Kuznetsov, . Born February 7, 1932 in Kalikino; † August 6, 2001 in Moscow) was a Russian athlete, who competed for the Soviet Union. At a height of 1.85 m his competition weight was 83 kg.
Vasily Kuznetsov was a decade of the best European decathlete. As the only multi-event athlete ever, he obtained three European titles. He also won two bronze medals at the Olympic games and improved the world record twice.
After his career Kuznetsov was a research associate at the sports university in Moscow. With 69 years he died of cancer.
Career
With 22 years Kuznetsov joined in Bern at the European Championships in 1954. With 6752 points ( 7043 points after the force since 1985 decathlon table), he won his first major title before the Finns Torbjörn Lassenius with 6424 ( 6821 ) points.
At the Olympic Games in Melbourne in 1956, the two Americans Milt Campbell won with 7937 ( 7565 ) points and Rafer Johnson, 7587 ( 7422 ) on gold and silver before Kuznetsov with 7465 ( 7730 ) points, with Kuznetsov in the pole vault and javelin throw, best individual performances of all participants reached. According to the table today valid Kuznetsov would have won gold, but the results are hardly comparable, especially in the pole vault in 1956 conventional metal rods are hard to evaluate with the 1985 table, because the table in 1985 takes into account the performance development with the since 1961 by releasing glass -fiber rods.
In May 1958 Kuznetsov excelled in Krasnodar with 8014 ( 7653 ) points the first decathlete the 8000 -point mark after the 1952 table. Two months later an international match USA vs. Soviet Union took place in Moscow. Rafer Johnson improved with 8302 (7789) points to the world record, defeating Kuznetsov, the points came on 7897 ( 7596 ). End of August 1958 took place in the European Championships in Stockholm. Kuznetsov defended his title with 7865 (7697) points to a respectable lead over his team-mates Estonian Uno Palu, who collected 7329 (7448) points.
A year after his first world record to Kuznetsov took back in May 1959 the world record of Rafer Johnson. With 8357 (7839) points this performance Kuznetsov should be best. After 1957 Kuznetsov was standing at the end of the season in 1959 for the second time at the top of world rankings. In September Kuznetsov increased in Turin the world record in the pentathlon at 4006 (4051) points. Kuznetsov had in 1956 erected in Kiev 3736 ( 3913 ) and 1958 points in Nalchik with 3901 ( 4010) points world records. Also in 1959, he was named by the Polish Press Agency Polska Agencja Prasowa (PAP ) to Europe's Sportsman of the Year.
The decathlon was at the Olympic Games in Rome in 1960 all about the duel between Rafer Johnson, who had zurückerkämpft at the AAU championships with 8683 ( 7981 ) points to the world record, and the Taiwanese Yang Chuan - Kwang. Johnson won with 8392 (7901) points before Yang 8334 (7820) points. Kuznetsov confirmed in third with 7809 (7527) points his rank as the best Europeans.
1962 at the European Championships in Belgrade won Kuznetsov his third European title in a row. However, he had with 8026 (7770) points only an extremely narrow lead on the German Werner von Moltke and 8022 (7786) points.
In Tokyo at the Olympic Games in 1964 Kuznetsov was 7569 ( 7454 ) points again seventh, but was only fifth best Europeans.
Vasily Kuznetsov was in the years 1953 to 1960 as well as 1962 and 1963 Soviet champion in the decathlon and is the most successful decathlete at the Soviet Championships. With ten titles in the same discipline he is one of the most successful Soviet athlete ever.
Overall Kuznetsov participated in his career at 43 ten fights in which he reached 30 victories.