Gymnastics mourns one of the greatest: Aleksandr Dityatin died

A farewell to a true gymnastics legend. Aleksandr Dityatin has died, according to several Russian media reports. He was 68 years old, born in St. Petersburg, and considered a legend in his discipline, with ten Olympic medals to his credit, including three gold medals.

His haul began to take shape at the 1976 Montreal Games, where this elegant athlete won two silver medals, one in the team event and one in the rings. Fourth in the overall competition in Canada, he would come out on top four years later at the Moscow Games in that very specialty, considered the most prestigious.

But it was especially in the Soviet capital that Dityatin made history as the first man to win eight medals in a single edition of the Games (which, it should be recalled, were boycotted by 65 nations, including the United States and West Germany, to name a couple): the individual title was joined by gold in the team and rings, four silver medals (pommel horse, vault, parallel bars and bars) and a bronze medal in the floor exercise.

Since then, no gymnast has been able to match him, and only U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps has done better, with eight golds at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Dityatin also routed the competition at the 1979 World Championships, winning the individual, team and ring titles, as well as a third-place finish on bars. He closed his career at the 1981 World Championships in Moscow with three more gold medals: team, rings, and parallel bars.