Sergei Tarasov (biathlete)

Sergei Tarasov

Personal information
Full name	Sergei Petrovich Tarasov
Born	(1965-02-15) 15 February 1965 (age 59) Staroaleiskoe, Altai Krai, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Height	1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Professional information
Sport	Biathlon
Olympic Games
Teams	2 (1994, 1998)
Medals	4 (1 gold)
World Championships
Teams	5 (1991, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997)
Medals	9 (2 gold)
World Cup
Seasons	9 (1989/90–1997/98)
Individual victories	4
Individual podiums	13
Medal record Men's biathlon Representing  Russia Olympic Games 1994 Lillehammer 20 km individual 1994 Lillehammer 4 × 7.5 km relay 1994 Lillehammer 10 km sprint 1998 Nagano 4 × 7.5 km relay World Championships 1996 Ruhpolding 20 km individual 1996 Ruhpolding 4 × 7.5 km relay 1993 Borovets 20 km individual 1993 Borovets 4 × 7.5 km relay 1994 Canmore Team event 1997 Brezno-Osrblie 12.5 km pursuit 1993 Borovets 10 km sprint Representing the  Soviet Union World Championships 1991 Lahti 4 × 7.5 km relay 1991 Lahti Team event

Sergei Petrovich Tarasov (Russian: Сергей Петрович Тарасов; born 15 February 1965) is a former Russian biathlete. In the 1990s, he was one of the dominating biathletes, winning four Olympic medals and seven World Championship medals over the course of his career.

During the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France, Tarasov became acutely ill and had to be taken to the hospital. Rumours about the cause of his grave medical condition soon started floating around the Olympic village, and was also reported in the press,^[1] but the Russian team leaders said he'd suffered kidney failure from eating poisonous mushrooms. Many years later, in 2015, Tarasov gave an interview where he confirmed what many had thought in 1992, his kidney failure was caused by a botched blood transfusion. He'd either gotten someone else's blood, or the blood had not been properly refrigerated during storage. The blood transfusion at the Olympics was done by the team to illegally enhance his performance in the upcoming competitions, but nearly cost him his life.^[2]

All results are sourced from the International Biathlon Union.^[3]

4 medals (1 gold, 1 silver, 2 bronze)

Event	Individual	Sprint	Relay
1994 Lillehammer	Gold	Bronze	Silver
1998 Nagano	15th	22nd	Bronze

9 medals (2 gold, 5 silver, 2 bronze)

Event	Individual	Sprint	Pursuit	Team	Relay
1991 Lahti	10th	10th	—	Bronze	Silver
1993 Borovets	Silver	Bronze	—	—	Silver
1994 Canmore	—	—	—	Silver	—
1996 Ruhpolding	Gold	9th	—	—	Gold
1997 Brezno-Osrblie	30th	5th	Silver	15th	8th

*During Olympic seasons competitions are only held for those events not included in the Olympic program.

**Pursuit was added as an event in 1997.

4 victories (3 In, 1 Sp)

Season	Date	Location	Discipline	Level
1990–91 1 victory (1 Sp)	19 January 1991	Ruhpolding	10 km sprint	Biathlon World Cup
1993–94 2 victories (2 In)	9 December 1993	Bad Gastein	20 km individual	Biathlon World Cup
	20 February 1994	Lillehammer	20 km individual	Winter Olympic Games
1995–96 1 victory (1 In)	4 February 1996	Ruhpolding	20 km individual	Biathlon World Championships

*Results are from UIPMB and IBU races which include the Biathlon World Cup, Biathlon World Championships and the Winter Olympic Games.

• Sergei Tarasov at IBU BiathlonWorld.com
• Sergei Tarasov at IBU BiathlonResults.com