Russian biathlete Maxim Chudov on January 11 reacted to the news of the death of two-time Olympic champion in biathlon Anatoly Alyabyev.
Chudov noted that Alyabyev was “a decent man, a professional in his field,” who always supported him.
“I managed to communicate with him and meet at sporting events. He always supported me … I remember him as a decent person, a professional in his field. This galaxy of that generation did a great job in order to put a certain foundation in Russian sports. Many athletes took an example from them, “he said in an interview with Izvestia.
Miracles called the incident a loss for Russian sports and expressed condolences to the family and friends of Alyabyev.
“This is a loss for Russian sports. From such gurus, from such professional athletes, you need to draw something every day, receive information, receive some knowledge, ”the athlete said.
The death of Alyabyev was announced earlier on January 11 by the Russian Biathlon Union. The Honored Master of Sports was 70 years old. Later, the Soviet biathlete Dmitry Vasiliev said that Alyabyev was fighting COVID-19 in the last days of his life.
Condolences in connection with the death of Alyabyev were expressed by the former president of the Russian Biathlon Union (RBU), Alexander Tikhonov, writes Sport-Express.
Anatoly Nikolaevich Alyabyev was born on December 12, 1951 in the village of Danilkovo in the Vologda region. In 1979 he became the champion of the USSR at a distance of 20 km. At the Winter Olympics in Lake Placid (USA) he won two gold medals – in the individual 20 km race and in the 4×7.5 km relay, as well as bronze in the 10 km sprint race.
He also has two bronze medals at the 1981 and 1982 World Championships. As a coach, he took part in the preparation of the Russian national biathlon team at the Olympic Games and World Championships until 1998.
