Tamara Lazakovich
Encyclopedia
Tamara Vasilyevna Lazakovich (Russian: Тамара Васильевна Лазакович), born 11 March 1954 in village Gusevo in the Pravdinskiy rayon
of the Kaliningrad
region of Russia
, was an Soviet gymnast
whose competed at the European, World, and Olympic level during the early 1970s.
Described as a "perky sparrow" with a "purity of line", Lazakovich was spotted by her compatriate, Olympic Champion before her, Larisa Petrik, in 1961, and brought to prominent coaches in the Belarus
sian system. She made a name for herself early on, winning many gold and silver medals at the 1968 and 1969 USSR Jr. Championships. Lazakovich debuted as a senior rather inauspiciously, however, at the 1970 World Championships
as a part of that year's World Champion Soviet Team - a low score of 8.00 on the balance beam during the compulsory segment of the team competition dropped her down to 21st place in the all-around, the lowest ranked of the Soviet team. Just a brief glance at her scores and results from that year's Worlds, however, reveals no indication of the tremendous haul of medals she would receive at major competitions over the next two years.
Her crowning achievement came the 1971 Europeans, where she tied her teammate, European, World, and Olympic All-Around Champion Ludmilla Tourischeva
for the European All-Around title. She also took two of the four individual event titles (Uneven Bars, Balance Beam), and won silver on the other two (Vault, Floor Exercise). Interesting to note is that in addition to being co-champions in the all-around, she or Tourischeva occupied the Gold and Silver positions on the podium on all 5 individual events, keeping German Erika Zuchold
in 3rd place on 4 out of 5 of them.
The next year, at the 1972 Olympics
where Tourischeva dominated the all-around and Soviet teammate Olga Korbut
stole the crowd's and media's attention with her daring moves and charismatic personality, Lazakovich quietly worked her way onto the individual podium three times, winning the bronze medal in the individual all-around and floor exercise, plus winning silver on the balance beam. Also of note is that her four-event total of 38.25 was the highest of any gymnast in the team compulsories segment of the competition.
Unfortunately, this accomplished gymnast struggled with alcoholism
, much like her contemporary, Soviet gymnast Zinaida Voronina
. As a result, she spent several years in jail, and died aged 38 in Vitebsk
in November 1992.
Rayon
Rayon is a manufactured regenerated cellulose fiber. Because it is produced from naturally occurring polymers, it is neither a truly synthetic fiber nor a natural fiber; it is a semi-synthetic or artificial fiber. Rayon is known by the names viscose rayon and art silk in the textile industry...
of the Kaliningrad
Kaliningrad
Kaliningrad is a seaport and the administrative center of Kaliningrad Oblast, the Russian exclave between Poland and Lithuania on the Baltic Sea...
region of Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, was an Soviet gymnast
Gymnastics
Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...
whose competed at the European, World, and Olympic level during the early 1970s.
Described as a "perky sparrow" with a "purity of line", Lazakovich was spotted by her compatriate, Olympic Champion before her, Larisa Petrik, in 1961, and brought to prominent coaches in the Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
sian system. She made a name for herself early on, winning many gold and silver medals at the 1968 and 1969 USSR Jr. Championships. Lazakovich debuted as a senior rather inauspiciously, however, at the 1970 World Championships
1970 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships
The 17th Artistic Gymnastics World Championships were held in Ljubljana, Slovenia, in 1970.-Medals:-All-around:- Floor exercise :-Pommel horse:-Rings:-Vault:-Parallel bars:-Horizontal bar:-Team final:-All-around:- Vault :...
as a part of that year's World Champion Soviet Team - a low score of 8.00 on the balance beam during the compulsory segment of the team competition dropped her down to 21st place in the all-around, the lowest ranked of the Soviet team. Just a brief glance at her scores and results from that year's Worlds, however, reveals no indication of the tremendous haul of medals she would receive at major competitions over the next two years.
Her crowning achievement came the 1971 Europeans, where she tied her teammate, European, World, and Olympic All-Around Champion Ludmilla Tourischeva
Ludmilla Tourischeva
Ludmilla Ivanovna Tourischeva is a former Russian gymnast and a nine-time Olympic medalist for the Soviet Union.Tourischeva began gymnastics in 1965 and began competing for the Soviet team as early as in 1967...
for the European All-Around title. She also took two of the four individual event titles (Uneven Bars, Balance Beam), and won silver on the other two (Vault, Floor Exercise). Interesting to note is that in addition to being co-champions in the all-around, she or Tourischeva occupied the Gold and Silver positions on the podium on all 5 individual events, keeping German Erika Zuchold
Erika Zuchold
Erica Zuchold , is a former East German gymnast who competed at the European, World, and Olympic level from the mid 1960s to early 1970s....
in 3rd place on 4 out of 5 of them.
The next year, at the 1972 Olympics
Gymnastics at the 1972 Summer Olympics
At the 1972 Summer Olympics, fourteen different artistic gymnastics events were contested, eight for men and six for women. All events were held at the Sports Hall in Munich from August 27 through September 1.-Format of competition:...
where Tourischeva dominated the all-around and Soviet teammate Olga Korbut
Olga Korbut
Olga Valentinovna Korbut , also known as the Sparrow from Minsk, is a Belarusian, Soviet-born gymnast who won four gold medals and two silver medals at the Summer Olympics, in which she competed in 1972 and 1976 for the USSR team....
stole the crowd's and media's attention with her daring moves and charismatic personality, Lazakovich quietly worked her way onto the individual podium three times, winning the bronze medal in the individual all-around and floor exercise, plus winning silver on the balance beam. Also of note is that her four-event total of 38.25 was the highest of any gymnast in the team compulsories segment of the competition.
Unfortunately, this accomplished gymnast struggled with alcoholism
Alcoholism
Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
, much like her contemporary, Soviet gymnast Zinaida Voronina
Zinaida Voronina
Zinaida Voronina, born Zinaida Borisovna Druzhinina was a Soviet gymnast who competed at the European, World, and Olympic level from the mid 1960s to early 1970s...
. As a result, she spent several years in jail, and died aged 38 in Vitebsk
Vitebsk
Vitebsk, also known as Viciebsk or Vitsyebsk , is a city in Belarus, near the border with Russia. The capital of the Vitebsk Oblast, in 2004 it had 342,381 inhabitants, making it the country's fourth largest city...
in November 1992.
External links
- http://tamara-lazakovich.narod.ru/ (Russian language page dedicated to Lazakovich)