Born 13 June 1956 at g. Malorita Brest region.
Awards and titles:
Honored Master of Sports.
He awarded the Order of Friendship of Peoples and the Labor Red Banner.
Progress:
Olympic champion (1980).
Silver medalist at the Olympic Games (1992).
World champion (1980, 1990).
Silver medalist of the World Championship (1987).
European champion (1980, 1988, 1991, 1992).
Silver medalist of European championship (1985, 1986).
Two-time champion of the Games of the peoples of the USSR (1979, 1983).
The winner of the tournament "Druzhba-84".
established 19 world records in the first and second heavyweight.
First coach - Peter Satyukov.
short biography:
Since childhood, Leonid Taranenko called Jabotinsky. He was a renowned athlete in the mid 60-ies of the last century – two-time Olympic champion in the heavyweight category.
In a small district center Malorita Leonid was snapped. The teenager pulled to his weightlifters, throw, fighters. But pulled his, eventually, a weightlifter Peter Satyukov – pervorazryadnik the rod, organized section in this sport. classes like, but Leni's father died unexpectedly.
In the hands of two children remained with the mother - he and his younger Jura. It was necessary to harness oneself in the life of an adult male. After high school, future champion mastered miller specialty. But to the delight of coach did not give up post. And soon outgrown and their manager. It was necessary to solve, what to do, and Leonid had no idea, what to do next. "Iron" to bewitch him, as it turned out, for life.
Decisive turn in the fate occurred 18 February 1974 of the year, Leonid Taranenko took part in the national championship voluntary sports society "Harvest". Competitions were held in Borisov. Here he spotted Ivan Logvinovich - coach volunteer from the Institute of Non-chernozem zone MESKH, Candidate of Technical Sciences.
Many thought Ivan Petrovich eccentric: He made no secret of his dream - to bring the Olympic champion. No less than! But first, ought to find a talented guy, physically gifted, who would have believed in the reality of this dream. And forty coach found him in the person of Leonid Taranenko. Eighteen year old boy went for eccentric stranger…
Both of them were lucky in the sense, that his "crazy" they began to climb at that time, When weightlifting in Belarus overcame a protracted crisis and started to progress. Fracture preceded rough, apparently, not visible organizational and educational-methodical work of young coaches, sports Heads, Department of weightlifting IFC, tens of sports enthusiasts collectives.
AT 1968 year Vitebsk Spartak Arnold Golubovic first of our countrymen set two world records. In the same year, his teammate Valery Shary first of the athletes of the republic took part in the World Cup (fifth place). AT 1972 by Metropolitan Rafail Belenkov Spartak became the first European champion, brought up in Belarus.
Real fireworks of the word "first". He was born more creative energy of athletes and coaches, inspired confidence in success. "No success, a triumph, - adjusted once a journalist Ivan, when they discussed this topic. - For Lenya I warrant!»
The quest for this goal from a mentor and apprentice were invincible, but rationally weighed, a calculated almost with computer precision. they planned Olympic victory 1980 year and a mathematical sequence came to her.
AT 1977 , Leonid Taranenko in the first heavyweight (then 110 kg) I pushed 213 kg, and reached a total of 380 kg - new records republic.
I went a year of hard pioneering work. Belarusian athlete in the championship of the Soviet Union in Kiev recorded in the second movement 222,5 kg. Increase over weighty! Nevertheless, his speech went unnoticed - Leonid has not made it to the number of winners.
We noticed a rising star after six months. In November, the draw of the Republic Cup Taranenko reached the international level. jerk - 180 kg (national record), push - 230, the sum of - 410 kg (national record). It was a challenge to the strongest weight lifter of the first heavy weight.
AT 1979 , Leonid Taranenko wins Spartakiad peoples of the USSR, at the World Cup in third place. In May 1980 , the Belarusian "tank" has updated two world records at the European Championship.
And the Olympics! 29 July 1980 at Universal Hall "Izmailovo", where weightlifters fought for the title of Olympic champions, on the platform athletes came first heavy weight. Our fellow countryman literally dealt with the main rival - an outstanding Bulgarian artists Valentin Christmas. From Minsk capped his brilliant success two world records: push - 240 kg, Nordic Combined - 422,5 kg, ahead of the opponent in the amount of at 17,5 kg. Bulgarian athlete after the defeat left the sport. Christ believed, that he beat Belarusian, as well as other athletes, will in the future not on the shoulder…
Couple crashes, took place after the Olympics, and only brought Taranenko, and Logvinovich. Their plan was breathtaking: in the near future, the Olympic champion in the snatch intended to show 200, and a push - 250 kg. the coach said, and the disciple modestly silent ...: unless permitted to argue with mentor? Installing it is necessary to perform implicitly - there is no alternative!
Leonid met championship in perfect physical shape, fighting mood, I felt fine. We had no doubt: Moscow sees something unbelievable. May be, spurt - in 200, push - in 250 kg.
And when ... As the thunder sounded from the blue - Taranenko sick. Seriously ill ... even possible death…
Followed by several complex operations. Courage and endurance athlete admired Moscow doctors. their skill, multiplied by the tremendous force of will and enormous biological potential patient, pushed death.
Held Leonid Taranenko rebirth as a human being, and then followed by a real miracle - the second of his birth as an athlete.
Analogue in the history of weightlifting twentieth century there. Olympic champions, If ingested for surgery (the same Jabotinsky), with the platform saying goodbye. Leonid Taranenko, the situation was much more complicated, but he returned to the platform as the victor (phenomenal victory at the "Friendship" in 1984 year, silver medal at the Olympic Games in Barcelona 92), as the creator of an unprecedented revolution in the "iron game" the last third of the twentieth century.
He established several records of the planet, some of which have not been surpassed so far. The Guinness Book of Records listed Leonid Taranenko world records in the jerk - 266 kg and 475 kg in total, set them in 1988 in the Australian city of Canberra on heavyweight Cup.
after the Olympics 1996 , Leonid athlete farewell to weightlifting. She gave it a 20 years old, She left her phenomenal victory and results, and unsolved mysteries: in fact born again, both conquered the world Hercules, I did not do any other world champion or Olympic Games in the twentieth century.
Who and when will repeat this unique achievement? And repeated? Leonid Taranenko left these questions as a reference to the XXI century.
According to the National Olympic Committee of Belarus.