Famous Olympic Champion Larissa Latynina

Between the Olympic Games held in Melbourne, Australia, in 1956 and the Olympics held in Tokyo, Japan, in 1964, Larissa Latynina collected more Olympic medals than any other athlete in the history of the Olympics, male or female, in any sport. She collected a total of 18 Olympic medals during the three Olympic Games that she participated in — nine gold medals, five silver medals, and four bronze medals. Some believe this is a record that will never be broken.

Larissa Latynina was born on December 27, 1934, in Kherson, Ukraine (then part of the Soviet Union). She began training as a ballet dancer, but when her choreographer moved to another city, she turned to gymnastics. After Larissa finished high school in 1953, she was sent to Kiev to go to the Lenin Polytechnic Institute and continue training as a gymnast.

Larissa made her debut on the international stage of gymnastics at the World Championships in 1954, where she won a gold medal in the team competition. She was 19 years old. It was the first of many medals that Larissa would earn before she retired from competing after the 1966 World Championships at the ripe old age of 35.

After Larissa retired from competition, she became a coach for the Soviet national gymnastics team. She held the coaching position until 1977. After she left her coaching position, she organized the gymnastics competition at the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow, Russia. Then Larissa Latynina really did retire and today she lives on an estate near the town of Semenovskoye, outside of Moscow.

There are a few great athletes that come to mind when we think of the Olympic Games. Larissa Latynina is at the top of that distinguished list, in my opinion.