Albert Demchenko, whose biography is presented in this article, is the legendary Russian sleigh rider, a seven-time participant and three-time Olympic medalist. He won many times in the championships of Russia and Europe, as well as in the classification of the World Cup.
Biographical data
Demchenko Albert Mikhailovich was born in 1971 in a small town Chusovoy, located in the Perm region, in a family of metallurgists. He was the eldest of five sons. Albert’s childhood cannot be called calm: he grew up a tomboy and a bully. Studying at school was difficult for him. The only entertainment for the future athlete was sledding. Moreover, they were made from improvised materials - my father welded several pipes and covered them with a board on top. It was on such sledges that Alchenko Demchenko conducted his first amateur training.
After graduation, the future titled sleigh continued his studies at the Humanitarian and Social Institute. The difficult 90s did not pass by the Demchenko family. Albert was forced to look for money in various jobs in search of money. He managed to master the profession of driver, loader, tiler and even seller of meat in the market. But temporary difficulties could not recapture his passion for sledding.
Sports career
Demchenko began to seriously engage in luge in 1984 under the leadership of Tatyana Yuferova. Six years later, Albert receives a call to the national team of the Soviet Union. But the first successes came to him as part of the Russian team.
At the European Championships in 1996, Demchenko won silver in singles and doubles in bronze. Then, after a break due to the economic crisis and health problems, Albert returned to the big sport. In the 2004/2005 season, he manages to win the World Cup among singles.
Then came the pre-Olympic season. Demchenko Albert managed to win a silver medal in Turin, as well as win the European Championship in singles. Two years later, the Russian sleigh ranks second in the continental championship, and in 2010 the European Championship in Cesan ends for him with a triumphal victory. Demchenko repeated his success two years later on his native highway in Paramonovo.
Sochi Olympics was to be the seventh for Albert. The preparation was carried out more than thoroughly: Albert personally participated in the development of a new model of sleds, in parallel with this he replenished his collection of gold medals from the European Championship in Sigulda. And so the 2014 Olympics has begun. In addition to the singles, which has already become a crown for Demchenko, Albert took part in the relay. And very successfully - he won two silver medals.
After the Sochi Olympics, the 43-year-old sleighman announced the end of his long and legendary sports career.
Personal life
Albert Demchenko, together with his wife Olga, lives near Moscow in Dimitrov. They raised their daughter Victoria, who followed in her father's footsteps and seriously went in for sledding.