267 articles
Ulli Eicke
Ulli Eicke (Ulrich Eicke, born 1952, Wuppertal) is a West German sprint canoeist, 1984 Los Angeles Olympic gold medalist in C-1 1,000 m, three-time world silver medalist, later Olympic training center head and dragon boat promoter.
Ulrich Papke
Ulrich Papke (born 1962, Neuruppin) is a German flatwater canoeist who with Ingo Spelly won C2 1,000 m gold and C2 500 m silver at Barcelona 1992, plus 11 world championship medals.
Vaclav Mottl
Václav Mottl (1914–1982), Czechoslovak sprint canoeist; with Zdeněk Škrland won Olympic gold in C2 10,000 m at Berlin 1936 (50:33.5) and bronze in C2 1,000 m at the 1938 Vaxholm world championships.
Vadzim Makhneu
Vadzim Makhneu (Вадзім Махнеў), Belarusian canoe sprint kayaker born 1979 in Minsk; 2008 Olympic K4 1000 m champion, four Olympic medals, seven world titles, mostly with Raman Piatrushenka.
Valery Didenko
Valery Didenko (Валерий Антонович Диденко, born 1946) is a Soviet sprint canoeist who won K4 1000 m gold at the 1972 Munich Olympics and world titles in 1970 and 1971; not the Afghan-war POW or the Baden-Baden businessman of the same name.
Vanya Gesheva
Vanya Gesheva (Ваня Гешева), born 1960, Bulgarian sprint kayaker; four Olympic medals: K-1 500 m silver at Moscow 1980 and gold, silver, and bronze at Seoul 1988, the only Bulgarian with a full medal set from one Games.
Victor Reneischi
Victor Reneischi, born 1967 in Babruysk, is a Belarusian sprint canoeist who with Nicolae Juravschi won two Olympic golds in 1988 and silver for Moldova in 1996.
Vikt'or K'rat'asiuk'i
Viktor Kratasyuk (ვიქტორ კრატასიუკი, 1949–2003), Georgian Soviet sprint kayaker; Olympic gold in K2 1000 m at Munich 1972 with Nikolai Gorbachev in 3:31.23; twice USSR champion.
Vladas Cesiunas
Vladas Česiūnas (Vladislovas Česiūnas, 1940–2023), Lithuanian sprint canoer for the Soviet Union; 1972 Munich Olympic gold in C-2 1,000 m with Yury Lobanov, four world titles, and a disputed 1979 West German defection case.
Vladimir Morozov (olympedia 10989)
Vladimir Ivanovich Morozov (Владимир Иванович Морозов, 1940-2023), Soviet sprint canoeist, three straight Olympic K-4/K-2 1000 m golds 1964-1972; distinct from his 1952-born namesake, the 1976 Olympic canoe champion.
Vladimir Parfenovich
Vladimir Parfenovich (Владимир Парфенович), born 1958 in Minsk, Soviet-Belarusian sprint kayaker; won three golds at the 1980 Moscow Olympics (K1 500, K2 500, K2 1000 with Chukhray), a first in the sport, plus nine world titles.
Vladimir Romanovsky
Vladimir Romanovsky (Владимир Вацлавович Романовский, 1957–2013), Soviet Belarusian sprint canoeist: 1976 Olympic K2 1000 m gold and K2 500 m silver with Sergey Nagorny, later world 10,000 m champion.
Vladimir Syrovatka
Vladimír Syrovátka (1908–1973), Czechoslovak sprint canoeist born in Zdolbuniv, Ukraine; nicknamed Rus. Won C2 1000 m gold with Jan Brzák-Felix at Berlin 1936 in 4:50.1; European champion 1934.
Vyacheslav Ionov
Vyacheslav Ionov (Вячеслав Ионов), Soviet sprint kayaker (1940-2012), won K4 1000 m gold at Tokyo 1964 in 3:14.67, world K4 10,000 m champion 1966, later a canoeing coach in Moscow; distinct from rower Vyacheslav Ivanov.
Walter Hofmann
Walter Hofmann (born 1949, Sömmerda) is an East German canoe slalom paddler, C-2 specialist, Olympic gold medalist at Munich 1972 with Rolf-Dieter Amend, and world champion in 1971, 1975 (team) and 1977.
Wilfrid Forgues
Wilfrid Forgues, now Sandra Forgues, French slalom canoeist born 1969 in Tarbes; with Franck Adisson won C2 slalom gold at Atlanta 1996 and bronze at Barcelona 1992, and transitioned beginning 2016.
Xu Shixiao
Xu Shixiao (徐诗晓), born 1992, Chinese sprint canoeist; with Sun Mengya won Olympic C2 500m gold at Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024, plus world titles in 2019, 2022, 2023.
Yang Wenjun
Yang Wenjun (杨文军), Chinese sprint canoeist born 1983 in Fengcheng, Jiangxi; with Meng Guanliang won Olympic C2 500 m gold at Athens 2004 (China's first canoeing gold) and Beijing 2008, the only pair to defend that title.
Yekaterina Kuryshko
Yekaterina Kuryshko (born 1949) is a retired Soviet sprint kayaker of Ukrainian origin who won gold in the K-2 500 meters at the 1972 Munich Olympics, paddling with Lyudmila Pinayeva.
Yelizaveta Dementyeva
Yelizaveta Dementyeva (Елизавета Дементьева), Soviet sprint kayaker, 1928-2022; won K-1 500 m gold at 1956 Melbourne Olympics, 1958 world title, and 1957 and 1959 European titles; not the tennis player Yelena Dementyeva.
Yrjo Hietanen
Yrjö Hietanen (Yrjö Jalmari Hietanen, 1927–2011), Finnish sprint canoeist; with Kurt Wires won K2 1,000 m and K2 10,000 m gold at Helsinki 1952, seventh at Melbourne 1956.
Yuliya Ryabchinskaya
Yuliya Ryabchinskaya (Юлія Петрівна Рябчинська, née Babak), Soviet Ukrainian kayak sprint canoeist, 1972 Munich Olympic K1 500 m champion (2:03.17) and 1971 K4 world champion, who drowned in January 1973 during a training camp in Poti, Georgia.
Yury Filatov
Yury Filatov (Юрий Николаевич Филатов, Юрій Миколайович Філатов), born 1948, Soviet Ukrainian canoeist; two-time Olympic K-4 1000 m champion (Munich 1972, Montreal 1976) and 1970, 1971 world champion; not the football executive Valery Filatov.
Yury Lobanov
Yury Terentyevich Lobanov (Юрий Терентьевич Лобанов, 1952–2017), Soviet sprint canoeist born in Dushanbe; 1972 Olympic C2-1000 m gold with Vladas Česiūnas, first Tajikistani Olympic champion, 1980 bronze, multiple world titles.
Yury Stetsenko
Yury Stetsenko (Юрий Николаевич Стеценко), born 1945 in Kyiv, Soviet/Ukrainian sprint kayaker; 1972 Olympic K4 1000 m gold medalist, three-time world champion (1966 K2, 1970 and 1971 K4), 11-time Soviet champion.
Zdeněk Škrland
Zdeněk Škrland (1914–1996), Czechoslovak sprint canoeist; with Václav Mottl won the first Olympic C2 10,000 m gold at Berlin 1936 in 50:33.5; also 1934 European and 1938 world bronze medalist.
Zsolt Gyulay
Zsolt Gyulay (Gyulay Zsolt, born 1964, Vác) is a Hungarian sprint kayaker, double 1988 Seoul Olympic champion (K1 500 m, K4 1000 m), six-time world champion, and since 2022 president of the Hungarian Olympic Committee.