Career
He served as the Olympic flag bearer for the Soviet Union in 1972 and for Belarus and recited the Judge"s Oath at the Opening Ceremony of the 1980 Olympics. Medved was smaller, at 190 cm and 100+ kg, yet big enough to fit into his last name, which means bear in Russian (and with minor variations in Belarusian and Ukrainian languages). Between 1967 and 1972 Medved had a rivalry with Bulgarian wrestler Osman Duraliev.
He was close to losing at the 1971 World Championships in Sofia, where Duraliev led the match 4:3 with 43 seconds left.
After retiring from competitions in 1972 Medved moved to Belarus, where he served with the Soviet Army in the late 1950s. There he worked as a national coach and lectured at the Belarusian State University of Informatics and Radioelectronics.
After the breakup of the Soviet Union he was appointed as vice-president of the Belarus Olympic Committee and of the Belarus Wrestling Federation. In 2001 he was chosen as the best Belorussian athlete of the 20th century and in 2003 became one of the first 10 inductees to the FILA International Wrestling Hall of Fame.
He is a honored citizen of Minsk, where since 1970s an annual wrestling tournament is held in his honor.
