Skier Alexander Bolshunov. Biography

Alexander Bolshunov is a three—time Olympic champion, world champion, two-time World Cup winner and two-time winner of the multi-day Tour de Ski. He won nine awards at two Olympic Games, and won three gold medals at the 2022 Beijing Games. About his childhood, the beginning of his sports career, the main victories and the personal life of Alexander Bolshunov — in the material of Izvestia.

Early years and education

Alexander Alexandrovich Bolshunov was born on December 31, 1996 in the village of Podyvotye in the Sevsky district of the Bryansk region. His first coach was his father Alexander Ivanovich Bolshunov, who himself participated in regional ski competitions. He taught Alexander and his older sister Anastasia to ski, and prepared a track for the children on his own in the forest near the village. The future Olympic champion began participating in regional and regional competitions as a teenager.

Later, Bolshunov continued his training at the sports school. Over the years, coaches Oleg Zhuravkov and Nikolai Nekhitrov worked with him. The first major results allowed the athlete to move to the national and then the international level.

In 2017, Bolshunov entered the Institute of Physical Culture and Sports of Penza State University. In 2021, he received a bachelor's degree, after which he continued his studies at the magistracy. Later, the athlete entered the graduate school of PSU.

Sports career

Bolshunov made his World Cup debut on March 8, 2017 in Drammen, Norway. In the sprint race, he immediately took ninth place. In the same year, the skier competed for the first time at the Adult World Championships in Lahti, Finland. The following season, Bolshunov gained a foothold among the leaders of the Russian national team.

Bolshunov held his first Olympic Games in Pyeongchang in 2018. He won four medals: silver in the 50 km marathon, team sprint and relay, as well as bronze in the individual sprint.

Bolshunov became a four-time silver medalist at the 2019 World Championships in Seefeld, Austria. He took second place in skiathlon, team sprint, relay and mass start. In the 2018/19 season, the Russian also became the second in the overall World Cup standings and won the distance standings.

The 2019/20 season has become one of the most important in Bolshunov's career. He won the multi-day Tour de Ski and the overall World Cup standings. Bolshunov became the first Russian skier to win the Big Crystal Globe. The following season, the athlete defended both titles: he again won the Tour de Ski and won the overall and distance World Cup competitions for the second time in a row.

At the 2021 World Championships in Oberstdorf, Bolshunov became world champion for the first time. He won the gold medal in skiathlon, ahead of the Norwegians Simen Hegstad Kruger and Hans Christer Holund. At the same tournament, the Russian became the silver medalist of the marathon and relay, and also received a bronze in the team sprint.

The Beijing Olympics and the main achievements

At the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, Bolshunov won his first Olympic gold medal. He won the skiathlon, and his gap from the nearest pursuer was more than a minute. Then the skier became the silver medalist of the race with a separate start and won the relay together with the national team. Bolshunov won the bronze medal in the team sprint.

Bolshunov also completed his final race of the Games with a victory, becoming a three-time Olympic champion of Beijing. In total, he received five awards at the 2022 Olympics - three gold, one silver and one bronze.

Bolshunov became the first and only male skier to win Olympic medals in all six disciplines of the program. Nine awards also made him the record holder among men representing the USSR and Russia in the number of medals at the Winter Olympic Games.

Personal life

Alexander Bolshunov's wife is former Russian skier Anna Zherebyatyeva. The athletes met at the national team training camp in 2015. In the summer of 2020, Bolshunov proposed to his chosen one, and on April 23, 2021, the couple registered their marriage. Zherebyatyeva herself achieved notable results in cross-country skiing: she was the winner of the World Cup stage and the winner of the World Youth Championship.

Alexander and Anna had their first daughter, Eva, on August 27, 2022. Bolshunov said that after her appearance, the family came to the fore for him. The athlete also introduces his daughter to his sport, and in February 2024, he said that he had already put eighteen-year-old Eva on skis. On July 22, 2026, Bolshunov became a father for the second time. The couple had another daughter, who was named Olivia.

Career after 2022 and non-admission to the 2026 Olympics

In March 2022, the FIS suspended Russian and Belarusian athletes from international competitions under its auspices. After that, Bolshunov focused mainly on the Russian starts. The 2023/24 season was particularly successful for him, when the athlete produced a long series of victories and again won the overall standings of the Cup of Russia. In 2025, he, in particular, became the champion of Russia in skiathlon and individual race, and also won the 70-kilometer mass start in Monchegorsk.

At the end of 2025, it became possible to allow individual Russian athletes to participate in FIS tournaments as individual neutral athletes. Bolshunov applied for this status, but the FIS commission rejected it on December 24. The skier tried to challenge the decision before the 2026 Olympics, but on January 29, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled that its Olympic division did not have jurisdiction to consider Bolshunov's application, since the original FIS decision was made before the time period set for this instance. As a result, the athlete did not compete at the Games in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo.