Valeriy Nikolayevich Brumel (Russian:Валерий Николаевич Брумель; 14 April 1942 – 26 January 2003)[2] was a Soviet-Russian high jumper. The 1964 Olympic champion and multiple world record holder, he is regarded as one of the greatest athletes ever to compete in thehigh jump. His international career was ended by a motorcycle crash in 1965.[1]
Brumel was born in a far easternSiberian village to a family of geologists exploring the region.[3] His father was of German descent. They later moved toLuhansk and taught at a local university.
Brumel took up the high jump at age 12 in Lugansk, coached by P. S. Shtein. Aged 16 he cleared 2 metres (6 ft 7 in) using the then dominant straight-legstraddle technique. He improved his skills under the coaching of V. M. Dyachkov in Moscow. In 1960 he broke the USSR record, 2.17 metres (7 ft 1 in), and was selected to the Olympic team. At the1960 Summer Olympics, he cleared the same height as the winnerRobert Shavlakadze, but made more attempts and thus was awarded a silver medal.[2]
A plaque in Bulgarian onVasil Levski National Stadium, Sofia, commemorating Brumel's world record of 2.25 m set on 31 August 1961
In 1961–1963 he broke his ownworld record in the high jump six times, improving it from 2.23 metres (7 ft 4 in) to 2.28 metres (7 ft 6 in).[4] He also won the high jump at the 1961 and 1963 Universiade, 1962 European Championships, the USSR Championships of 1961–1963, and the1964 Summer Olympics.[1][5]
After going undefeated during the 1965 season, Brumel suffered a multiple fracture in his right foot in a motorcycle crash, and faced an amputation. He was operated on successfully by professorGavriil Ilizarov with a new leg-lengthening procedure using hisexternal fixator. Yet even after 29 surgeries, he could not fully recover. He retired in 1970 after jumping 2.06 metres (6 ft 9 in) at local competitions.[1][5]
In retirement Brumel turned to acting and writing. He starred in the filmSport, Sport, Sport (1970) and wrote the script forPravo na pryzhok (The Right to Jump, 1973). He also wrote numerous novels and plays, including the novelDon't Change Yourself (1979), which was translated into seven languages, and thelibretto toRauf Hajiyev's operettaGolden Caravel (Золотая каравелла).[1][5]
Brumel had two brothers, Oleg (1944–2005) and Igor, a Russian politician born in 1952 inRostov.[6] Brumel was married three times. His first wife, Marina, was a gymnastics instructor.[7] She left him with a son in 1965, when Brumel was recovering from his motorcycle crash. In 1973 Brumel marriedYelena Petushkova, an equestrian and 1972 Olympic champion in dressage. The couple divorced 18 months later, citing irreconcilable differences. They had a daughter, Vlada Petushkova, born in 1974, who was raised by her mother.[8] In 1992 Brumel married Svetlana Belousova, who later founded and managed the Valeriy Brumel Fund. They had a son Viktor.[5][9]
