Alexander Ivanovich Tikhonov (Russian: Александр Иванович Тихонов; born 2 January 1947) is a former Soviet biathlete. On 23 July 2007, he was found guilty of conspiracy to commit murder and sentenced to three years of imprisonment, but he was amnestied immediately and did not spend any time in prison.
![]() Tikhonov in 2015 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Full name | Alexander Ivanovich Tikhonov | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | (1947-01-02) 2 January 1947 (age 75) Uyskoye, Kolkhozny, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Professional information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sport | Biathlon | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
World Cup debut | 13 January 1978 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Olympic Games | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Teams | 4 (1968, 1972, 1976, 1980) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medals | 5 (4 gold) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
World Championships | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Teams | 11 (1967, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medals | 17 (11 gold) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
World Cup | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Seasons | 3 (1977/78–1979/80) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Individual victories | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Individual podiums | 4 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Tikhonov trained at Dynamo in Novosibirsk. He won nine world championship biathlon gold medals and four Olympic gold medals. He lacks an individual Olympic gold medal in his cupboard, but took part in the gold medal relay winning teams in 1968, 1972, 1976, and 1980.
He lived in Austria for several years in the early 2000s.
In May 2002, he was chosen as vice president of the International Biathlon Union (IBU). A two-year investigation by the IBU found that in 2009 he reportedly offered a jewelry box to the IBU Secretary General in the hope that she wouldn’t pursue evidence of doping by Russian athletes. [1]
In 2000, he was accused of participating in planning the murder of Kemerovo Oblast governor Aman Tuleyev. According to the prosecution, a businessman named Mikhail Zhivilo and his company MIKOM had a business conflict with Tuleyev, and Zhivilo decided to organize Tuleyev's murder as revenge. Zhivilo knew Tikhonov and, allegedly, asked him for help. Tikhonov got him in touch with his younger brother, Viktor Tikhonov, who found two potential killers—Vladimir Kharchenko and Sergey Nikanorov. Kharchenko and Nikanorov went to FSB and told them about the murder plans. Viktor Tikhonov was convicted in 2002 and sentenced to four years imprisonment. Since Alexander Tikhonov lived in Austria for several years, he was indicted separately from the other accused. On 23 July 2007, he was found guilty of conspiracy to commit murder and sentenced to three years of imprisonment. However, he was amnestied immediately and did not spend any time in prison.[2]
All results are sourced from the International Biathlon Union.[3]
5 medals (4 gold, 1 silver)
Event | Individual | Sprint | Relay |
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Silver | — | Gold |
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4th | — | Gold |
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5th | — | Gold |
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— | 9th | Gold |
17 medals (11 gold, 4 silver, 2 bronze)
Event | Individual | Sprint | Relay |
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9th | — | Silver |
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Gold | — | Gold |
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Gold | — | Gold |
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Silver | — | Gold |
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Gold | — | Gold |
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5th | 11th | Gold |
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7th | 6th | Silver |
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— | Gold | — |
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Bronze | Gold | Gold |
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17th | 17th | 4th |
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Silver | 6th | Bronze |
2 victories (1 In, 1 Sp)
Season | Date | Location | Discipline | Level |
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1978–79 2 victories (1 In, 1 Sp) | 21 January 1979 | ![]() | 10 km sprint | Biathlon World Cup |
6 April 1979 | ![]() | 20 km individual | Biathlon World Cup |
World champions in men's biathlon – 20 km individual | |
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World champions in men's biathlon – 10 km sprint | |
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World champions in men's biathlon – 4 × 7.5 km relay | |
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General | |
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National libraries |