Overview
- European Athletics said he died on December 23, 2025, confirming the news at age 85.
- In 1969 he set successive world records of 74.68 m and 75.48 m, becoming the first to surpass 75 metres.
- He won Olympic gold in Munich in 1972 while competing for the Soviet Union.
- He earned bronze at the 1976 Olympics before transitioning to a full-time coaching career.
- His athletes included Yuriy Sedykh, whose 86.74 m world record still stands, as well as Canadian-based protégés Dylan Armstrong and Ethan Katzberg after international stints in Portugal and Kuwait.