Maksim Opalev

Maksim Alexandrovich Opalev (Russian: Максим Александрович Опалев; born 4 April 1979) is a retired Russian sprint canoeist. Competing in three Summer Olympics, he has won a complete set of medals in the C-1 500 m event (gold: 2008, silver: 2000, bronze: 2004).^[1]

Key Information

Personal information
Born	4 April 1979 (1979-04-04) (age 46) Volgograd, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Height	184 cm (6 ft 0 in)
Weight	93 kg (205 lb)
Sport
Sport	Canoe sprint
Club	Spartak Voronezh
Medal record Representing  Russia Olympic Games 2008 Beijing C-1 500 m 2000 Sydney C-1 500 m 2004 Athens C-1 500 m World Championships 1998 Szeged C-1 500 m 1999 Milan C-1 200 m 1999 Milan C-1 500 m 1999 Milan C-1 1000 m 2001 Poznań C-1 500 m 2002 Seville C-1 200 m 2002 Seville C-1 500 m 2002 Seville C-4 200 m 2003 Gainesville C-1 200 m 2005 Zagreb C-4 200 m 2006 Szeged C-1 500 m 1997 Dartmouth C-4 1000 m 2001 Poznań C-1 200 m 2002 Seville C-1 1000 m 2003 Gainesville C-1 500 m 2005 Zagreb C-1 200 m 2007 Dusiburg C-1 200 m 2001 Poznań C-4 200 m 2003 Gainesville C-1 1000 m 2005 Zagreb C-1 500 m Disqualified 2003 Gainesville C-4 200 m Disqualified 2003 Gainesville C-4 500 m
Representing  Russia
Olympic Games
	2008 Beijing	C-1 500 m
	2000 Sydney	C-1 500 m
	2004 Athens	C-1 500 m
World Championships
	1998 Szeged	C-1 500 m
	1999 Milan	C-1 200 m
	1999 Milan	C-1 500 m
	1999 Milan	C-1 1000 m
	2001 Poznań	C-1 500 m
	2002 Seville	C-1 200 m
	2002 Seville	C-1 500 m
	2002 Seville	C-4 200 m
	2003 Gainesville	C-1 200 m
	2005 Zagreb	C-4 200 m
	2006 Szeged	C-1 500 m
	1997 Dartmouth	C-4 1000 m
	2001 Poznań	C-1 200 m
	2002 Seville	C-1 1000 m
	2003 Gainesville	C-1 500 m
	2005 Zagreb	C-1 200 m
	2007 Dusiburg	C-1 200 m
	2001 Poznań	C-4 200 m
	2003 Gainesville	C-1 1000 m
	2005 Zagreb	C-1 500 m
Disqualified	2003 Gainesville	C-4 200 m
Disqualified	2003 Gainesville	C-4 500 m
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Opalev's potential was evident when he won two gold medals as a sixteen-year-old at the 1995 World Junior Championships in Yamanashi, Japan. Competing against opponents two years older than himself he won the C-2 1000 m title (with Konstantin Fomichev) as well as the C-4 500 m gold. At the next edition of the world junior championships, in Lahti, Finland, in 1997, Opalev won the C-1 1000 m title.

At the ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships, Opalev has won 20 medals between 1997 and 2007. This includes eleven golds (C-1 200 m: 1999, 2002, 2003; C-1 500 m: 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2006; C-1 1000 m: 1999, C-4 200 m: 2002, 2005), six silvers (C-1 200 m: 2001, 2005, 2007; C-1 500 m: 2003, C-1 1000 m: 2002, C-4 1000 m: 1997), and three bronzes (C-1 500 m: 2005, C-1 1000 m: 2003, C-4 200 m: 2001). Opalev also won two more medals at the 2003 world championships in Gainesville, Georgia, United States with golds in the C-4 200 m and C-4 500 m events, but were stripped of those medals when teammate Sergey Ulegin failed a doping test.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Maxim Opalev.

• ICF medalists for Olympic and World Championships – Part 1: flatwater (now sprint): 1936–2007 at the Wayback Machine (archived 2010-01-05)
• ICF medalists for Olympic and World Championships – Part 2: rest of flatwater (now sprint) and remaining canoeing disciplines: 1936–2007 at WebCite (archived 2009-11-09)