Background
Ivan Tsikhan was born on July 24, 1976 in the village of Glovsevichi, Slonim region, Hrodzyenskaya Voblasts', at that time Belarusian SSR.
2016
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Ivan Tsikhan of Belarus, Pawel Fajdek of Poland and Wojciech Nowicki of Poland celebrate on the podium after receiving their medals from the final of the mens hammer on day five of The 23rd European Athletics Championships at Olympic Stadium on July 10, 2016 in Amsterdam, Netherlands
2007
Osaka, Japan
Belarus' gold medalist Ivan Tsikhan, Slovenia's silver medalist Primoz Kozmus and Slovakia's bronze medalist Libor Charfreitag celebrate during the medal ceremony of the men's hammer throw finals, 27 August 2007, at the 11th IAAF World Championships in Osaka
2016
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Ivan Tsikhan of Belarus, Pawel Fajdek of Poland and Wojciech Nowicki of Poland celebrate on the podium after receiving their medals from the final of the mens hammer on day five of The 23rd European Athletics Championships at Olympic Stadium on July 10, 2016 in Amsterdam, Netherlands
2004
Athens, Greece
Men's hammer throw bronze medal winner Ivan Tsikhan poses on the podium 23 August 2004, during the Olympic Games medal ceremony at the Olympic Stadium in Athens
2004
Athens, Greece
Men's hammer throw bronze medal winner Ivan Tsikhan poses on the podium 23 August 2004, during the Olympic Games medal ceremony at the Olympic Stadium in Athens
2006
Gothenburg, Sweden
Ivan Tsikhan celebrates on the podium of the Men's Hammer final during a ceremony at the 19th European Athletics Championships in Gothenburg, Sweden, 12 August 2006
2006
Gothenburg, Sweden
Ivan Tsikhan celebrates during a ceremony at the 19th European Athletics Championships in Gothenburg, Sweden, 12 August 2006
2007
Osaka, Japan
Belarus' gold medalist Ivan Tsikhan, Slovenia's silver medalist Primoz Kozmus and Slovakia's bronze medalist Libor Charfreitag celebrate during the medal ceremony of the men's hammer throw finals, 27 August 2007, at the 11th IAAF World Championships in Osaka
2008
Beijing, China
Ivan Tsikhan celebrates the Olympic bronze medal he won at Beijing in 2008
2016
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Ivan Tsikhan of Belarus, Pawel Fajdek of Poland and Wojciech Nowicki of Poland celebrate on the podium after receiving their medals from the final of the mens hammer on day five of The 23rd European Athletics Championships at Olympic Stadium on July 10, 2016 in Amsterdam, Netherlands
2016
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Ivan Tsikhan won silver medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio
2016
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Ivan Tsikhan won silver medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio
2016
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Ivan Tsikhan clinched silver in the Olympic men’s hammer throwing competition in Rio with an impressive 77.79 throw
2016
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Silver medalist Ivan Tsikhan of Belarus, gold medalist Dilshod Nazarov of Tajikistan and bronze medalist Wojciech Nowick of Poland with flags during the Men's Hammer Throw on Day 15 of the Rio 2016
2016
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Ivan Tsikhan won silver medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio
2016
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Ivan Tsikhan won silver medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio
2016
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Ivan Tsikhan clinched silver in the Olympic men’s hammer throwing competition in Rio with an impressive 77.79 throw
2016
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Ivan Tsikhan clinched silver in the Olympic men’s hammer throwing competition in Rio with an impressive 77.79 throw
2016
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Ivan Tsikhan in action during the final of the mens hammer in Rio Olympics
2016
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Ivan Tsikhan clinched silver in the Olympic men’s hammer throwing competition in Rio with an impressive 77.79 throw
2016
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Ivan Tsikhan won silver medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio
2016
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Ivan Tsikhan at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio
2016
Grodno, Belarus
Ivan Tsikhan returning home from the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio
2016
Minsk, Belarus
Ivan Tsikhan returning home from the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio
2016
Minsk, Belarus
Ivan Tsikhan returning home from the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio
2016
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Ivan Tsikhan in action during the final of the mens hammer in Rio Olympics
2016
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Silver medalist Ivan Tsikhan of Belarus, gold medalist Dilshod Nazarov of Tajikistan and bronze medalist Wojciech Nowick of Poland stand on the podium during the medal ceremony for the Men's Hammer Throw on Day 15 of the Rio 2016
2016
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Ivan Tsikhan in action during the final of the mens hammer on day five of The 23rd European Athletics Championships at Olympic Stadium on July 10, 2016 in Amsterdam
Tsikhon
Ivan Tsikhan was born on July 24, 1976 in the village of Glovsevichi, Slonim region, Hrodzyenskaya Voblasts', at that time Belarusian SSR.
He graduated from Slonim sports school for children and youth, Grodno School of the Olympic Reserve, and Yanka Kupala State University of Grodno. Ivan developed great strength and skill as he has been keen on sports since early boyhood. At first he tried different kinds of sport but later got interested in hammer throwing.
Tsikhan competed at his first World Championships in 1997, but without reaching the final. He also failed to do so at the 1998 European Championships, but finished tied for third in the final at the 2000 Olympic Games. He was ranked fourth because he did not have a superior second best. He then finished sixth at the 2001 Summer Universiade and ninth at the 2002 European Championships, and competed at the 2001 World Championships without reaching the final.
Tsikhan competed at his first World championships in 1997 but without reaching the final. He also failed to do so at the 1998 European Championships but finished tied for third in the final at the 2000 Olympic Games. Unfortunately, he was ranked fourth because he did not have a superior second best. Then he finished sixth at the 2001 Summer Universiade and ninth at the 2002 European Championships and competed at the 2001 World Championships without reaching the final.
The year 2003 was successful. He surpassed the 80-metre barrier for the first time. He became the world champion for the first time in 2003 in Paris with a throw of 83.03 metres. He won the 2003 Summer Universiade. These victories inspired him for further gigantic work and for further achievements. His greatest desire was to win in the Olympic Games of 2004 in Athens. His ambition was realized and he won the silver medal. That was really the turning point in his career because since that great event he has achieved many victories. In 2005, he became the World champion in hammer throwing. In 2006, Tsikhan won the European Championships. He also finished second at the 2006 World Athletics Final and the 2006 World Cup. In 2007, Tsikhan won his third World Championships with a throw of 83.63 metres. This was his season's best. He again won the 2007 World Athletics Final.
In 2008, Tsikhan had a season's best of 84.51 metres. He finished third at the 2008 Olympic Games with a throw of 81.51 metres. This victory brought about a lot of problems to Tsikhan and grief to all his fans. He was tested positive for abnormal levels of testosterone after the hammer throw finals on August 12, 2008. He was stripped of his medals by the International Olympic Committee, but Tsikhan appealed to the Court for Arbitration for Sport (CAS). In June 2010, the CAS ruled in his favor and due to discrepancies in drug testing he was reawarded his bronze medal. The CAS stated that he was not cleared of suspicion, insisting the verdict "should not be interpreted as an exoneration." In May 2012, banned substances were found in Tsikhan's samples from the 2004 Summer Olympics after being retested, he was subsequently withdrawn from the 2012 Summer Games, and he was later disqualified by International Olympic Committee. In April 2014, Following the doping sanctions of Ivan Tsikhan which was announced in the IAAF Newsletter in March 2014, the IAAF confirmed the period of annulment for all his results from 22 August 2004 to 21 August 2006. In 2014, Tsikhan ran for the Grodno regional council of deputies. He was nominated as a candidate for a Deputy chairman of the Grodno regional structure "Dynamo", and after the victory he called himself also an instructor for the special training of military unit No. 5448.
In 2016, Tsikhan competed for Belarus at the 2016 Summer Olympics. He won silver with a throw of 77.79 metres. Tsikhan carried the flag for Belarus during the Olympic closing ceremony.
Ivan Tsikhan is a very kind-hearted, helpful and thoughtful man. He did a lot for the development of sports not only in our country but in our town and region. He sponsored the construction of a number of sports grounds and stadiums. He initiates numerous competitions in track and field and provides prizes for the winners. He often meets young people and though he is a well-known man, he is very simple and decent.
Physical Characteristics:
Height: 1.86 m
Weight: 110 kg
His wife Olga nee Tarantaeva was also an athlete. The family has two children: son Ivan and daughter Vera.