The Most Famous
SWIMMERS from Belarus
Top 3
The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Belarusian Swimmers of all time. This list of famous Belarusian Swimmers is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.
1. Sergey Koplyakov (b. 1959)
With an HPI of 38.16, Sergey Koplyakov is the most famous Belarusian Swimmer. His biography has been translated into 19 different languages on wikipedia.
Sergey Viktorovich Koplyakov (Russian: Сергей Викторович Копляков; born 23 January 1959) is a Russian-Belarusian swimmer who won two gold medals competing for the Soviet Union at the 1980 Summer Olympics. Sergey Koplyakov moved into top ranks of world swimming in 1979, coming behind Vladimir Salnikov, Andrey Krylov and Volodymyr Raskatov, enabling the Soviet Union to fully compete in male freestyle with American champions in the late 1970s. In sports history, Koplyakov will be the swimmer who ended 15 years of American domination in the 200 m freestyle and the first man who bested the time of 1:50 (on 7 April 1979 he achieved 1:49.83 in East Berlin). Born in Orsha, Belarus' 11th-largest city, Koplyakov debuted in 1974, at the age of 15. He won the 200 m juniors in a people's tournament in 1969. From Minsk he went to Leningrad, one of the pilot centers of the new Soviet swimming and was selected in 1976 for the Montreal Olympic Games, where he won a silver medal in the 4×200 m. His best time in 200 m that year was 1:53.37. In 1977 he was very discreet, only got a fifth place in the 200 m of the European Championships. In 1978, in the West Berlin World Championships, he finished third in the 200 m, behind two Americans with a time of 1:51.33 (new European record). He achieved high recognition in 1978, beating on 7 April the 200 m world record, during the first split of one 4×200 m relay in a GDR/USSR meeting; after that he won the 100 m in 51.46 and the 200 m of the Europe Cup (London) in August and finally the 200 m of the Spartakiad in Moscow in September with 1:50.13, showing himself as one of the most serious opponents for the American swimmers.
2. Aliaksandra Herasimenia (b. 1985)
With an HPI of 37.41, Aliaksandra Herasimenia is the 2nd most famous Belarusian Swimmer. Her biography has been translated into 33 different languages.
Aliaksandra Viktarauna Herasimenia (born 31 December 1985) is a Belarusian former swimmer. After a medal-winning career, including gold at the 2012 World Championships and silver at the 2012 London Olympics, she became a critic of the Lukashenko regime in Belarus, and now lives in exile in Poland.
3. Yelena Rudkovskaya (b. 1973)
With an HPI of 32.28, Yelena Rudkovskaya is the 3rd most famous Belarusian Swimmer. Her biography has been translated into 15 different languages.
Yelena Grigoryevna Rudkovskaya (Russian: Елена Григорьевна Рудковская) (born 21 April 1973) is a Belarusian swimmer and Olympic champion. She competed at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, where she received a gold medal in 100 m breaststroke, and a bronze medal in 4×100 m medley relay.
People
Pantheon has 3 people classified as Belarusian swimmers born between 1959 and 1985. Of these 3, 3 (100.00%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Belarusian swimmers include Sergey Koplyakov, Aliaksandra Herasimenia, and Yelena Rudkovskaya. As of April 2024, 1 new Belarusian swimmers have been added to Pantheon including Yelena Rudkovskaya.
Living Belarusian Swimmers
Go to all Rankings
Sergey Koplyakov
1959 - Present
HPI: 38.16
Aliaksandra Herasimenia
1985 - Present
HPI: 37.41
Yelena Rudkovskaya
1973 - Present
HPI: 32.28
