| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Native name | Игорь Яковлевич Высоцкий | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Birth name | Igor Yakovlevich Vysotsky | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nationality | Russian | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 10 September 1953 Yagodnoye, Khabarovsk Krai, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 2 April 2023 (aged 69) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 202 lb (92 kg) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Boxing | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight class | Heavyweight | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Trud Sports Club | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Igor Yakovlevich Vysotsky (10 September 1953 – 2 April 2023)[1] was a Soviet amateur boxer who competed from 1973 to 1979, best known for twice defeating the triple Olympic Champion Teófilo Stevenson, being the only boxer out of more than two hundred of Stevenson's opponents to ever knock him out, though he himself never participated in the Olympics. Vysotsky was the Soviet Heavyweight Champion in 1978, ranked the #1 Soviet heavyweight of the late 1970s from the American standpoint,[2] and had an amateur record of 161–24. Representing the Trud Sports Club, Vysotsky was known and widely recognized for his aggressive style, punching power, stamina, and durable chin, having 24 losses in his record he had never experienced any other than standing defeat (never has been knocked down in his career).[3] While apart from 1978 he never stepped up to semi-finals at the national championships, being constantly outpointed by technically skilled opponents, his unorthodox style and mentioned strengths counted, for he always was chosen to compete versus U.S. heavyweights in the USA–USSR match-ups, presenting a considerable level of opposition when it came to trading punches.
- ^ Биография Игоря Высоцкого .vysotsky.web-box.ru
- ^ Rogers, Thomas (23 November 1976). "U.S., Soviet Heavyweights Set for Rematch". The New York Times.
- ^ Russian Boxers Meet Americans By Tim White (AP Sports Writer), Yuma Sun, November 14, 1975, p. 14.