Yuriy Sedykh, the world hammer record holder and the Olympic champion twice, have died at the age of 66, said Athletics World on Tuesday.
Sedykh, who competed for the Soviet Union, won gold at the 1976 and 1980 Olympics and the only world title at the age of 36 in the 1991 championship in Tokyo.
Throwing 86.74 meters in the 1986 European Championship is still a world record.
“For me, Yuriy is a friend, a wise mentor, to whom I am very grateful that we share life experiences and human values,” Sergei Bubka, senior Vice President of Athletics World and Pole Vault Great, wrote on Twitter.
“The extraordinary twice Olympic champion, which a fantastic world record in Hammer Throw (86.74) for 35 years is still not damaged …
We will always remember Yuriy.”