An athlete, in order to win competitions, needs physical and psychological preparation. Willpower is required after the end of a sports career. Viktor Saneev steadfastly endured the vicissitudes of fate that met on his life path.
Starting conditions
In physical education lessons at school, children are laid the foundation for a healthy lifestyle. Not all children associate their fate with professional sports. At the same time, specialists have the opportunity to identify talented guys from whom record holders and champions can be raised. This mechanism took shape in the distant Soviet era. And it continues to function properly today. Victor Danilovich Saneev was born on October 3, 1945 in the family of an accountant. Parents lived on the Black Sea coast in the famous city of Sukhumi.
The future Olympic champion grew and developed in difficult conditions. As a result of a serious illness, my father could not move and even take care of himself. Mother had to work hard to make ends meet in the family budget. Little Vitya did his best to help her. Despite the efforts made, the situation did not improve, and then his mother sent him to a boarding school for upbringing. Here the boy was fed and clothed. As subsequent events showed, Vitya turned out to be a hardworking and purposeful person.
In the boarding school, he began to stubbornly engage in sports. In those days, all the boys of the Soviet Union were fond of football. After a while, the boarding school's football team became the champion of the region. It is important to note that famous athletes from Moscow came to Abkhazia to train. The warm climate contributed to this. Saneev never missed an opportunity to see how the high jump record holder Valery Brumel was training. He not only observed, but also memorized the key exercises. Returning from boarding school in his native Sukhumi, Victor continued to train on his own.
Saneev's sports career developed along a complex trajectory. He got a job at a local mechanical repair plant and became interested in playing basketball. In 1962, he was enrolled in the national team of Abkhazia. Victor demonstrated a decent level of play. It was during this period that the head coach of the Abkhaz athletes Hakob Kerselyan noticed him. It took the coach a lot of effort to convince Saneev to change his specialization abruptly. But the achieved milestones were worth it. After a year and a half, he fulfilled the norms of a master of sports in three disciplines - long jump, triple jump and 100-meter run.
Sports trajectory
The road to the national team of the Soviet Union was open for Saneev. However, an unfortunate accident delayed this event. At one of the trainings, the athlete received a minor injury. As a result, arthrosis of the foot began to develop intensively. The procedures in the best clinic in Sukhumi did not yield any results. But Victor himself began to try various methods of treatment and the disease receded. After a few months, returning to training, he showed an impressive result in the triple jump - 15 m 78 cm. Two weeks later, Saneev became a full-fledged member of the national team.
By this time, the coaching staff updated the methodology of training athletes and Saneev's performance improved significantly. At the next USSR championship, he takes first place in the triple jump. Simultaneously with the training process, Victor was educated at the Sukhum Institute of Subtropical Plants. Combining study and training was not so easy, as thorough preparations began for the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City. By that time, Saneev did not have the proper experience of performing at international competitions.
Successes and achievements
All famous athletes who were considered leaders in the triple jump came to the Olympics. None of them even heard of the Soviet athlete Saneev. But it was he who created the main intrigue of the competition, and he got the gold medal. A unique event in the history of athletics took place in Mexico City. Within one day, the world record in the triple jump was exceeded three times. Twice this was done by the Soviet athlete Viktor Saneev, fixing the final result of 17 m 39 cm. During the next Olympic cycle, not a single athlete could come close to this indicator.
The next Olympic Games in 1972 were held in Munich. Saneev arrived at the stadium as a well-known person. The psychological factor in big-time sports matters. The expectations of the audience and the rivals were fully justified. Saneev took first place with a score of 17 m 44 cm. Coaches and technicians are well aware that athletic longevity is achieved with great effort. Self-discipline and self-restraint. Viktor Danilovich did not drink alcohol. Strictly followed a rational diet. Didn't miss training.
Departure to Australia
Much has been said and written about the contribution made by Viktor Saneev to the country's prestige. His personal life has developed as it should. Husband and wife still live under the same roof. Next to them is a son and grandchildren. Only a family lives on a green mainland called Australia. I must say that they did not move there because of a good life.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the eminent athlete was left practically without a livelihood. The sports society "Dynamo", where he was engaged in coaching, ceased to exist. Some of his former friends "brought" Saneev to contact the employer. After moving to the southern hemisphere, the Olympic champion taught physical education in college. Then he moved to a coaching position. The Saneevs live in the city of Sydney.
