Sergei Litvinov

• Born: January 23, 1958
• Birthplace: Tsukarov, Krasnodar district, Soviet Union (now in Russia)
• Died: February 19, 2018
• Place of death: Sochi, Russia

Sport: Track and field (hammer throw)

Early Life

Sergei Nikolayevich Litvinov was born on January 23, 1958, in Tsukarov, Krasnodar district, near the Black Sea, in what was then part of the Soviet Union. Born during the Cold War, he was drawn into a life in the Soviet Army. He was also interested in athletics. His military career was a factor in his choice of individual athletic competition as opposed to team competition.

Litvinov grew to a height of almost 5 feet 11 inches and a weight of nearly 240 pounds. His muscular build led to a natural interest in events of strength such as the hammer throw. In 1972, at the age of fourteen, he entered his first official competition. In 1974, at the age of sixteen, he threw the hammer 60.68 meters (199 feet).

The Road to Excellence

In 1976, Litvinov gained international recognition when he set a world junior record with a throw of 72.38 meters (237 feet six inches). In 1977, he raised that record and also became a member of the Soviet national track and field team.

Litvinov's athletic development was paralleled by his training as a Soviet Army officer. His physical training in the military helped him to develop the arm, shoulder, and back muscles vital to hammer-throw success. Because the hammer is thrown with both hands, tremendous upper-body strength and excellent coordination are required for a championship performance. The hammer is actually a sixteen-pound metal sphere attached to a grip by a steel spring wire, which is almost four feet long. The event—which is believed to have its origin in sledgehammer throwing in England and Scotland during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries—first appeared in the Olympics in 1900.

I. Timashkov coached Litvinov in the hammer throw. In 1978, Litvinov improved his best to 76.32 meters (250 feet 5 inches), a mark he raised to 79.82 meters (261 feet 11 inches) in 1979. This performance enabled him to join Yuri Sedykh and Yuri Tamm in a Soviet trio that dominated the hammer throw through the next decade.

The Emerging Champion

By 1980, the members of the trio were repeatedly setting and breaking world records. In May, the world record, which was then held by the German Karl-Hans Reihm, was first broken by Sedykh. Tamm followed with a new record, which was erased immediately by Sedykh. Eight days later, Litvinov beat both of his countrymen and set his first world record with a mighty throw of 81.66 meters (267 feet 11 inches).

In the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, the Soviet trio had the field to themselves. Because the United States and many Western European nations boycotted the games in response to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, Karl-Hans Reihm, the only threat to the Soviets, could not compete.

Sedykh had won his first gold medal in the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, and he repeated as champion in 1980, with a throw of 81.80 meters (268 feet 5 inches). Litvinov's first toss in Moscow was 80.64 meters (264 feet 7 inches), enough for the silver medal. Tamm won the bronze.

Following the 1980 Olympics, the competition between Litvinov and Sedykh intensified, inspiring both men to previously unthinkable performances. Because Sedykh was three years older and had more experience than Litvinov, his advantage held through the next three years; however, Litvinov was rapidly narrowing the gap. In 1982, he set his second world record with a throw of 83.98 meters (275 feet 6 inches). Litvinov placed third in the European Championships that year.

The year of 1983 marked a major summit in Litvinov's career. Not only did he win the World Track and Field Championships in Helsinki, Finland, with a throw of 82.68 meters (271 feet 4 inches), but he also defeated Sedykh for the first time in a major competition—Sedykh’s first such defeat since 1976. In 1983, Litvinov's best effort was a tremendous 84.14 meters (276 feet) for his third world record.

In 1984, the personal duel again turned in favor of Sedykh. Although Litvinov threw more than 85 meters for the first time at a meet in Cork, Ireland, he placed second to Sedykh, who set a new world record at 86.34 meters (283 feet 4 inches). The Soviet trio missed the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles as a result of a Soviet boycott.

In 1986, Litvinov reached his personal high point when he threw the hammer 86.04 meters (282 feet 4 inches). Sedykh, however, again surpassed him with a new world record of 86.74 meters (284 feet 7 inches). In 1987, Sedykh did not enter any official competition as he trained for the 1988 Olympics. This gave Litvinov an easy road to win the European Cup in Prague in June and to defend his world championship successfully in Rome in September.

The climax of Litvinov's career came in the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. As in 1980, the Soviet trio won all three medals, but this time, the top two positions were reversed. Litvinov won the gold medal with a throw of 84.80 meters (278 feet 2 inches), setting a lasting Olympic record. Sedykh followed with 83.76 meters (274 feet 10 inches) for the silver, and Tamm again received the bronze.

Continuing the Story

The friendly rivalry between Litvinov and Sedykh left a lasting impact on athletic events with individual competition. With the added incentive of both to stay a throw in front of Tamm, the impact was even greater. Litvinov and Sedykh were the first men ever to throw the hammer more than 85 meters (279 feet).

The Soviet Union had many honors for its outstanding athletes. Many were awarded the title of Master of Sport; only the elite, however, were honored as Merited Masters of Sport. Along with Sedykh and Tamm, Litvinov was awarded this highest title.

Litvinov and his closest rival, Sedykh, retired from active competition after the 1988 Olympics. After the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991, Tamm competed in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics for his native republic of Estonia.

Litvinov retired as a Soviet Army officer about the same time as his retirement from track and field. At the time, he was living in Rostov-on-Don, not far from his place of birth. For several years, Litvinov had been a student working on a diploma in physical education and after his retirement from the army, he began a new career as a physical-education teacher. He went on to a notable career as a coach, working with athletes including his son, also named Sergei, who won a bronze medal at the 2014 European Championships.

While coaching in Sochi, Russia, Litvinov unexpectedly collapsed on February 19, 2018, after cycling home from a practice. After an ambulance crew failed to revive him he was pronounced dead at the age of sixty, prompting numerous tributes from the track and field community.

Summary

Throughout his many years of training, Sergei Litvinov exhibited tremendous determination to become a champion. His fierce competitive spirit, his consistent improvements, and his many awards all serve as examples of what an athlete can accomplish with hard work and dedication.

Bibliography

Bingisser, Martin. "We All Just Want to Be Litvinov." HMMR Media, 21 Feb. 2018, www.hmmrmedia.com/2018/02/we-all-just-want-to-be-litvinov/. Accessed 27 Nov. 2018.

Greenberg, Stan. Whitaker’s Olympic Almanack: An Encyclopaedia of the Olympic Games. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn, 2000.

"Olympic Gold Medalist Sergei Litvinov Dies at Age 60." ESPN, 20 Feb. 2018, www.espn.com/olympics/trackandfield/story/‗/id/22506311/sergei-litvinov-gold-medalist-hammer-throw-1988-dies-60. Accessed 27 Nov. 2018.

Ramsak, Bob. "Litvinov, Former World and Olympic Hammer Champion, Dies." IAAF, 20 Feb. 2018, www.iaaf.org/news/iaaf-news/sergey-litvinov-hammer-throw-obituary. Accessed 27 Nov. 2018.

Wallechinsky, David, and Jaime Loucky. The Complete Book of the Olympics: 2008 Edition. London: Aurum Press, 2008.