Serhiy Olizarenko (born 9 September 1954) is a retired Soviet

steeplechase Steeplechase may refer to: * Steeplechase (horse racing), a type of horse race in which participants are required to jump over obstacles * Steeplechase (athletics), an event in athletics that derives its name from the steeplechase in horse racing ...

runner. He competed 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 ...

, but failed to reach the final. Olizarenko was born in

Kirovohrad Oblast Kirovohrad Oblast ( uk, Кіровоградська область, translit=Kirovohradska oblast; also referred to as #Nomenclature, Kirovohradschyna — uk, Кіровоградщина) is an administrative divisions of Ukraine, oblast (prov ...

, Ukraine, and in 1968 moved to

Odessa Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrativ ...

. At the 1980 Olympic semi-final he tore an

Achilles tendon The Achilles tendon or heel cord, also known as the calcaneal tendon, is a tendon at the back of the lower leg, and is the thickest in the human body. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcaneus (h ...

and had to abandon the race. After that he had two surgeries, but failed to recover and retired from competitions. In 1978 Olizarenko met the middle-distance runner Nadezhda Mushta. They married the same year, and had a daughter Oksana born soon after the 1980 Olympics.

References

1954 births Living people Athletes (track and field) at the 1980 Summer Olympics Soviet male middle-distance runners Soviet male steeplechase runners Olympic athletes for the Soviet Union {{USSR-athletics-bio-stub