Aleksandr GOLUBEV

While Aleksandr Golubyov has only won two international speed skating races of importance, one of them was the Olympic 500 m at the 1994 Winter Olympics, where, known for his fast starts but weaker finishes, Golubyov had the fastest time of all at 100 m. Unlike other occasions, he managed to hold on to this lead, keeping ahead of his team mate Sergey Klevchenya. The year before, Golubyev had won a World Cup race in Heerenveen, his only other victory. Golubyev continued to skate for several more years, but never reached the level of 1993 and 1994, when he placed fourth and fifth in the 500 m overall World Cup. Domestically, Golubyov was the Russian sprint all-around champion in 1996, while being runner up in this event at the 1998 Russian Championships. He never won a national single distance title, his best finish being second in 500 m at the 1991 Soviet Championships. Retiring after the 1998 season, Golubyov was made an honorary citizen of his home town, Kostroma. He later became vice president of the Russian trade union's sports society )Rossiya).

Personal Bests: 500 – 36.14 (1994); 1000 – 1:13.52 (1998); 1500 – 2:02.07 (1989); 5000 – 8:02.4 (1989).