Vladislav Polyakov
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| Full name | Vladislav Vitalyevich Polyakov | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nickname(s) | Vlad | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nationality |
 Kazakhstan
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| Born |
30 November 1983 Petropavl, Kazakh SSR |
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| Height | 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 78 kg (172 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Sport | Swimming | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Strokes | Breaststroke | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Coral Springs Swim Club (USA) |
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| College team | Alabama Crimson Tide (USA) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coach | Michael Lohberg (USA) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Vladislav Vitalyevich Polyakov (also Vlad Polyakov, Russian: Владислав Витальевич Поляков; born November 30, 1983 in Petropavl) is a Kazakhstani swimmer, who specialized in breaststroke events. He swam for his native Kazakhstan at three Olympic Games (2004, 2008, and 2012), and eventually finished fifth in both 100 and 200 m breaststroke at his official Olympic debut in Athens. In total, he has won eight medals in major international tournaments, including his first career gold from the 2006 FINA World Short Course Championships in Shanghai, China. While residing in the United States, Polyakov is a five-time SEC champion, a double NCAA titleholder, and a two-time gold medalist at the national championships. He also earned a total of twelve All-American titles while playing for the Alabama Crimson Tide from 2003 to 2007.
Polyakov was born in Petropavl, Kazakh SSR, the son of Vitaliy Polyakov and Galina Polyakova. During his early childhood, his family moved to Moscow, Russia, where he started swimming at the CSKA Red Army Club, one of Russia's top sports clubs. He was put in a national program for elite swimmers, and was forced to undergo a rigorous training that left him fatigued and mentally ill. In June 1999, Polyakov came to the United States under the guidance of his mother Galina, concerned about her son's lifetime goals. Polyakov almost gave up his sporting career before he decided to leave Eastern Europe: "At the time I left Russia I was sick mentally, I didn't want to go through another hard practice. I was so dead I was thinking about quitting swimming."
During his first trip to the United States, Polyakov met Michael Goldenberg, a former Russian water polo player working as a top-ranked official and coach. He resided in Florida with Goldenberg and family, who later became his legal guardians. He attended Saint Thomas Aquinas High School in Fort Lauderdale, graduating in 2002, and swam for the Coral Springs Swim Club under four-time Olympic coach Michael Lohberg.
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