Vladimir Yashchenko

Who was Vladimir Yashchenko?

Vladimir Ilyich Yashchenko or Volodymyr Yashchenko was a Ukrainian member of the Soviet national team and former world record holder in the high jump.

He first broke the record at age 18 with a jump at 233 cm, at the USA-USSR junior dual meet in Richmond, Virginia, 1977. He won the 1978 European Championships high jump competition with a jump of 230 cm. On March 12, 1978 he achieved the highest mark using the straddle technique.

In 1979 he suffered a severe knee injury and his career was effectively over at the age of 20. Yashchenko died from cirrhosis at the age of 40.