Andrey Silnov

Andrey Silnov

Personal information
Nationality	Russia
Born	9 September 1984 Shakhty, Rostov Oblast
Height	1.98 m (6 ft 6 in)
Weight	83 kg (183 lb)
Sport
Sport	Track and field
Event(s)	High jump
Coached by	Sergey Starykh and Yevgeniy Zagorulko
Medal record Men’s athletics Representing  Russia Olympic Games 2008 Beijing High jump World Indoor Championships 2012 Istanbul High jump European Championships 2006 Gothenburg High jump
Updated on 19 May 2012.

Andrey Alexandrovich Silnov (Russian: Андрей Александрович Сильнов, born 9 September 1984) is a Russian high jumper and the 2008 Olympic champion. Born in Shakhty, Rostov Oblast, he is 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) and weighs 83 kg (183 lbs).

In a late 2006 interview, Andrey said he was the younger son of working-class parents and that he got into athletics as a boy, inspired by the triple-jumping exploits of an older brother.^[1] He quickly realized that his height was an advantage in the high jump. After winning the Russian Under-23 Indoor title in Moscow in 2005 – with a jump of 2.24 m – he was asked to join an elite-level group of Russian jumpers training under coach Yevgeniy Zagorulko.

Silnov burst onto the world scene in 2006, when he won the gold medal at the 2006 European Championships with a jump of 2.36 metres, improving the old championship record which was set by Steinar Hoen with 2.35 m in 1994. A week after the European Championships Silnov jumped 2.37 metres in Monaco. This was the world leading jump in 2006 by a comfortable margin.^[2]

Indoors, he has made much of his progression at the Hochsprung mit Musik, setting personal bests in 2006 and 2007 before setting his current best of 2.37 to win the competition.

Olympic Champion in 2008

He jumped a new personal best of 2.38, in the London Grand Prix 25 July 2008, and was selected at the last minute to join the Russian team at the 2008 Olympics, where he won the gold medal with a jump of 2.36. His performance in Beijing was astonishing, as he was the only competitor to clear every height on his first attempt and was the only jumper to succeed at 2.36. He then by-passed the Olympic Record of 2.39 and had the bar raised to 2.42, where he missed all three attempts.

2009 and 2010 Seasons

Silnov's 2009 season was blighted by injury and he was ruled out of competition with an Achilles injury for nearly 12 months. He returned to competition in early 2010.^[3]

2011 Outdoor Season

Silnov's first major outdoor competition of 2011 was at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Oregon on Saturday 4 June. This Diamond League invitational brought together an elite field of 8 of the world's best jumpers. Silnov opened at 2.16 (as did every jumper except Spank) and he cleared every height on his first jump, until missing once at 2.32. When none of the three remaining jumpers could clear 2.35, German Raul Spank was the winner on the basis of his first-try clearance at 2.32, Silnov was second, and American Jesse Williams was third (with a third try clearance at 2.32).

Politician

In 2014 Silnov was elected a member of Legislative Assembly of Rostov Region.

Achievements

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Notes
Representing  Russia
2005	European U23 Championships	Erfurt, Germany	9th	2.23 m
2006	European Championships	Gothenburg, Sweden	1st	2.36 m CR, PB
	World Athletics Final	Stuttgart, Germany	2nd	2.33 m
	World Cup	Athens, Greece	2nd	2.24 m
2007	World Championships	Osaka, Japan	11th	2.21 m
2008	Aviva London Grand Prix	London, England	1st	2.38 m PB
	Olympic Games	Beijing, China	1st	2.36 m
	World Athletics Final	Stuttgart, Germany	1st	2.35 m CR
2012	World Indoor Championships	Istanbul, Turkey	2nd	2.33 m

References

1. IAAF.org, News Centre, 18 January 2007, "Silnov is fishing for the World High Jump record"; accessed 5 June 2011.
2. IAAF top lists – men's high jump 2006
3. Russia's Olympic champion Silnov ready to return. Runnerspace (2010-02-02). Retrieved on 2014-04-21.

External links

• Andrey Silnov profile at IAAF
• Dolgopolov, Nickolai; Rostislav Orlov (2007-01-18). "Silnov is fishing for the World High Jump record". IAAF. Retrieved 2006-01-21.