Maksim Opalev

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Maksim Opalev
Personal information
Born4 April 1979 (1979-04-04) (age 44)
Volgograd, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Height184 cm (6 ft 0 in)
Weight93 kg (205 lb)
Sport
SportCanoe sprint
ClubSpartak Voronezh
Medal record
Representing  Russia
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 2008 Beijing C-1 500 m
Silver medal – second place 2000 Sydney C-1 500 m
Bronze medal – third place 2004 Athens C-1 500 m
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 1998 Szeged C-1 500 m
Gold medal – first place 1999 Milan C-1 200 m
Gold medal – first place 1999 Milan C-1 500 m
Gold medal – first place 1999 Milan C-1 1000 m
Gold medal – first place 2001 Poznań C-1 500 m
Gold medal – first place 2002 Seville C-1 200 m
Gold medal – first place 2002 Seville C-1 500 m
Gold medal – first place 2002 Seville C-4 200 m
Gold medal – first place 2003 Gainesville C-1 200 m
Gold medal – first place 2005 Zagreb C-4 200 m
Gold medal – first place 2006 Szeged C-1 500 m
Silver medal – second place 1997 Dartmouth C-4 1000 m
Silver medal – second place 2001 Poznań C-1 200 m
Silver medal – second place 2002 Seville C-1 1000 m
Silver medal – second place 2003 Gainesville C-1 500 m
Silver medal – second place 2005 Zagreb C-1 200 m
Silver medal – second place 2007 Dusiburg C-1 200 m
Bronze medal – third place 2001 Poznań C-4 200 m
Bronze medal – third place 2003 Gainesville C-1 1000 m
Bronze medal – third place 2005 Zagreb C-1 500 m
Disqualified 2003 Gainesville C-4 200 m
Disqualified 2003 Gainesville C-4 500 m

Maksim Alexandrovich Opalev (Russian: Максим Александрович Опалев; born 4 April 1979) is a retired Russian sprint canoeist. Competing in three Summer Olympics, he has won a complete set of medals in the C-1 500 m event (gold: 2008, silver: 2000, bronze: 2004).[1]

Opalev's potential was evident when he won two gold medals as a sixteen-year-old at the 1995 World Junior Championships in Yamanashi, Japan. Competing against opponents two years older than himself he won the C-2 1000 m title (with Konstantin Fomichev) as well as the C-4 500 m gold. At the next edition of the world junior championships, in Lahti, Finland, in 1997, Opalev won the C-1 1000 m title.

At the ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships, Opalev has won 20 medals between 1997 and 2007. This includes eleven golds (C-1 200 m: 1999, 2002, 2003; C-1 500 m: 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2006; C-1 1000 m: 1999, C-4 200 m: 2002, 2005), six silvers (C-1 200 m: 2001, 2005, 2007; C-1 500 m: 2003, C-1 1000 m: 2002, C-4 1000 m: 1997), and three bronzes (C-1 500 m: 2005, C-1 1000 m: 2003, C-4 200 m: 2001). Opalev also won two more medals at the 2003 world championships in Gainesville, Georgia, United States with golds in the C-4 200 m and C-4 500 m events, but were stripped of those medals when teammate Sergey Ulegin failed a doping test.

References[edit]

  1. ^ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Maksim Opalev". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020.

External links[edit]