Nikolai Yefimovich Andrianov (russian: Никола́й Ефи́мович Андриа́нов; 14 October 1952 – 21 March 2011) was a Soviet and Russian gymnast. He held the record for men for the most

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...

medals at 15 (7 gold medals, 5 silver medals, 3 bronze medals) until

Michael Phelps Michael Fred Phelps II (born June 30, 1985) is an American former competitive swimmer. He is the most successful and most decorated Olympian of all time with a total of 28 medals. Phelps also holds the all-time records for Olympic gold med ...

surpassed him at the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics. Andrianov is the third athlete (male or female) in cumulative Olympic medals after Phelps's 28 and

Larisa Latynina Larisa Semyonovna Latynina (russian: link=yes, Лариса Семёновна Латынина, née Diriy, Дирий; born 27 December 1934) is a former Soviet artistic gymnast. Between 1956 and 1964 she won 14 individual Olympic medals and ...

's 18. Andrianov won the most medals at the

1976 Summer Olympics Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 ...

with 6 individual medals and one team medal. Within the sport of Men's

Artistic Gymnastics Artistic gymnastics is a discipline of gymnastics in which athletes perform short routines on different apparatuses. The sport is governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG), which designs the Code of Points and regulates ...

, he also holds the men's record for most individual Olympic medals (12) and shares the male record for most individual Olympic gold medals in gymnastics (6) with

Boris Shakhlin Boris Anfiyanovich Shakhlin (russian: Борис Анфиянович Шахлин; 27 January 1932 – 30 May 2008) was a Soviet gymnast who was the 1960 Olympic all-around champion and the 1958 all-around World Champion. He won a total of 13 ...

and

Dmitry Bilozerchev Dmitry Vladimirovich Bilozerchev (russian: Дмитрий Владимирович Билозерчев, born 22 December 1966 in Moscow) is a Russian gymnastics coach and retired gymnast who represented the Soviet Union. One of the most accompl ...

(the latter of which only if you count the 1984 Alternate Olympics). In many other rankings among all-time medal winners at the Olympic, World, and European levels, he ranks very high (for example, he is second only to

Vitaly Scherbo Vitaly Venediktovich Scherbo (or Shcherbo; russian: Виталий Венедиктович Щербо, or Shcherba; be, Віталь Венядзіктавіч Шчэрба, ''Vital' Venjadziktavich Shcherba'', born 13 January 1972) is a Bel ...

in total individual medal counts at either the gold level or any level at the combined Olympic and World levels as well as at the combined Olympic, World, and European levels), easily making him one of the most decorated gymnasts of all time.

Early life and Olympic career

Andrianov entered the

Children and Youth Sports School A sports school (russian: Детско-Юношеская Спортивная Школа, ДЮСШ) is a type of educational institution for children that originated in the Soviet Union. Sports schools were the basis of the powerful system of ph ...

of the Burevestnik sports society in

Vladimir Vladimir may refer to: Names * Vladimir (name) for the Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, Macedonian, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak and Slovenian spellings of a Slavic name * Uladzimir for the Belarusian version of the name * Volodymyr for the Ukr ...

at age 11. His first international success came in 1971 at the European Championships in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

, where he won two gold medals. Between 1971 and 1980 he won many international gymnastics competitions, including the Olympic Games, world championships and European championships. Andrianov's first Olympic medal was a gold in the 1972 floor competition. He dominated the 1976 gymnastics competition, winning four golds, including the all-around, two silvers, and a bronze. These medals included golds in the floor exercises,

rings Ring may refer to: * Ring (jewellery), a round band, usually made of metal, worn as ornamental jewelry * To make a sound with a bell, and the sound made by a bell :(hence) to initiate a telephone connection Arts, entertainment and media Film and ...

, and

vault Vault may refer to: * Jumping, the act of propelling oneself upwards Architecture * Vault (architecture), an arched form above an enclosed space * Bank vault, a reinforced room or compartment where valuables are stored * Burial vault (enclosure ...

, as well as a prized gold in the 1976 all-around. His record of four gymnastic golds at a single games stood until

won six other medals in 1992. Andrianov took the

Olympic Oath The Olympic Oath (distinct from the Olympic creed) is a solemn promise made by one athlete, judge or official, and one coach at the Opening Ceremony of each Olympic Games. Each oath taker is from the host nation and takes the oath on behalf of all ...

for athletes at the

1980 Summer Olympics The 1980 Summer Olympics (russian: Летние Олимпийские игры 1980, Letniye Olimpiyskiye igry 1980), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad (russian: Игры XXII Олимпиады, Igry XXII Olimpiady) and commo ...

in Moscow. In the gymnastics competition, he won two more golds, two silvers, and a bronze. Andrianov's golds in that Olympics were in the

and team competition, his silvers were in the all-around and floor exercises, and his bronze medal was in the

horizontal bar The horizontal bar, also known as the high bar, is an apparatus used by male gymnasts in artistic gymnastics. It traditionally consists of a cylindrical metal (typically steel) bar that is rigidly held above and parallel to the floor by a syste ...

. He retired shortly after that year's Olympics.

Later life

Andrianov married another famous Soviet gymnast, two-time Olympic champion

Lyubov Burda Lyubov Viktorovna Burda (russian: Любовь Викторовна Бурда; born 11 April 1953) is a retired Soviet artistic gymnast. Career In 1967 Burda placed 3rd in the all-around at the USSR Championships (also the USSR Spartakiade th ...

. Together they worked as children's gymnastics coaches, with Andrianov being the head coach of the Soviet national men's junior team in 1981–1992. In 1990–1992 he also coached the Soviet senior gymnastics team, and in 1990–1993 headed the Soviet and later the Russian Gymnastics Federation. In 2001, Andrianov was inducted into the

International Gymnastics Hall of Fame The International Gymnastics Hall of Fame, located in Oklahoma City, USA, is a hall of fame dedicated to honoring the achievements and contributions of the world's greatest competitors, coaches and authorities in artistic gymnastics. The early IGHO ...

. Between 1994 and 2002 he coached the

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

Olympic gymnastics team, on the invitation of his former rival,

Mitsuo Tsukahara Mitsuo Tsukahara (塚原光男 ''Tsukahara Mitsuo'', born December 22, 1947) is a Japanese artistic gymnast. He was five times an Olympic Gold Medalist. He remained active in the sport after his retirement from competition. He served as vice p ...

. Andrianov coached Tsukahara's son,

Naoya Tsukahara Naoya Tsukahara (Japanese:塚原直也 ''Tsukahara Naoya'', born June 25, 1977) is a former Japanese artistic gymnast and 2004 Olympic Gold Medalist now coaching and competing for Australia. He is the son of the former Japanese gymnast, Mitsu ...

, and both father and son credit him with raising Naoya's skills and confidence to equip him to compete at the international level. In 2002 he became the director of gymnastics at the N.G. Tolkachyov Specialized Children and Youth sports school in

, where he first began the sport as a youth.

Illness and death

In his final years, Andrianov developed the degenerative

neurological disorder A neurological disorder is any disorder of the nervous system. Structural, biochemical or electrical abnormalities in the brain, spinal cord or other nerves can result in a range of symptoms. Examples of symptoms include paralysis, muscle weakn ...

multiple system atrophy Multiple system atrophy (MSA) is a rare neurodegenerative disorder characterized by autonomic dysfunction, tremors, slow movement, muscle rigidity, and postural instability (collectively known as parkinsonism) and ataxia. This is caused by pro ...

and in his final months was unable to move his arms or legs or talk. Andrianov died on 21 March 2011 at the age of 58, in his hometown of

. Russia's national gymnastic team coach, Alexander Alexandrov, called the death "tragic", but stated that he had been ill for a long time.

Achievements (non-Olympic)

Honours and awards

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration ...

Order of the Badge of Honour The Order of the Badge of Honour (russian: орден «Знак Почёта», orden "Znak Pochyota") was a civilian award of the Soviet Union. It was established on 25 November 1935, and was conferred on citizens of the USSR for outstanding ...

Order of the Red Banner of Labour The Order of the Red Banner of Labour (russian: Орден Трудового Красного Знамени, translit=Orden Trudovogo Krasnogo Znameni) was an order of the Soviet Union established to honour great deeds and services to th ...

Medal "For Labour Valour" The Medal "For Labour Valour" (russian: Медаль «За трудовую доблесть») was a civilian labour award of the Soviet Union bestowed to especially deserving workers to recognise and honour dedicated and valorous labour or ...

Lenin Komsomol Prize Lenin Komsomol Prize () was a Soviet annual award for the best works in science, engineering, literature or art carried out by young authors of age not exceeding 33 years. Komsomol was the abbreviated name of The Communist Union of Youth (Russi ...

References

External links

International Federation of Gymnastics' Article on Nikolai Andrianov

BiographyIOC 1980 Summer Olympics
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IOC 1980 Summer Olympics

Obituary Nikolai Andrianov
, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Andrianov, Nikolai 1952 births 2011 deaths People from Vladimir, Russia Burevestnik (sports society) athletes Communist Party of the Soviet Union members Gymnasts at the 1972 Summer Olympics Gymnasts at the 1976 Summer Olympics Gymnasts at the 1980 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1980 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1976 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1972 Summer Olympics Medalists at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships Honoured Masters of Sport of the USSR Merited Coaches of the Soviet Union Recipients of the Lenin Komsomol Prize Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour Olympic gold medalists for the Soviet Union Olympic silver medalists for the Soviet Union Olympic bronze medalists for the Soviet Union Olympic gymnasts of the Soviet Union Olympic medalists in gymnastics Russian male artistic gymnasts Soviet male artistic gymnasts World champion gymnasts Universiade medalists in gymnastics Oath takers at the Olympic Games Universiade gold medalists for the Soviet Union Sportspeople from Vladimir Oblast Medalists at the 1973 Summer Universiade European champions in gymnastics Neurological disease deaths in Russia Deaths from multiple system atrophy