Grigory Vladimirovich Weritschew

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Grigori Vladimirovich Weritschew ( Russian Григорий Владимирович Веричев ; born April 4, 1957 in Kungur ; † May 25, 2006 in Chelyabinsk ) was a Soviet judoka . He was world champion, four-time European champion and won an Olympic bronze medal in 1988.

Life

The 1.87 m tall Weritschew started in 1980 in the heavyweight division or in the open class.

Weritschew started judo in 1969 and was part of the Soviet national team from 1977. In 1978 he won silver with the national team at the European Team Championship, his only international championship participation in the light heavyweight division. At the European Championships in 1981 he won the heavyweight title by beating the Bulgarian Dimitar Sapryanov in the final . At the world championships in the same year he reached the final, but lost there against the Japanese Yasuhiro Yamashita . The following year he lost early at the European Championships in 1982 to the French Angelo Parisi , but then fought his way to the bronze medal. Later in 1982, Weritschew won the student world championships and took second place with the Soviet team at the European championships. In 1983 he lost in the semi-finals of the European Championships in the open class against Angelo Parisi, in the battle for bronze he defeated Fred Olhorn from the GDR. Also at the European Championships in 1984 Weritschew entered the open class and defeated the Belgian Robert Van de Walle in the semifinals , in the final he was defeated by Angelo Parisi. Like all athletes from the Soviet Union and all other Eastern bloc countries except Romania missed Weritschew the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles due to the Olympic boycott . At the alternative tournament in Warsaw, he won the heavyweight final against Dimitar Saprjanow.

In 1985 Weritschew won his second European title when he defeated the West German Alexander von der Groeben in the final of the European Championships in Hamar . At the World Championships he lost in the semifinals against the Japanese Hitoshi Saitō , but then won the bronze medal. In November 1985 Weritschew won the European team championship with the Soviet team. In 1986 he joined the European Championships in Belgrade in both heavyweight and open class and won a bronze medal each. Two months later he won the heavyweight division at the Goodwill Games . In 1987 he defeated the French Christian Vachon in the final of the open class at the European Championships in Paris. At the World Championships in Essen , he won the heavyweight final against the Egyptian Mohamed Ali Rashwan . Weritschew won his fourth European title in Pamplona in 1988 when he defeated Alexander von der Groeben in the heavyweight final . At the Olympic Games in 1988 , the open class was no longer part of the program, Weritschew was defeated in the semi-finals of the heavyweight tournament against Henry Stöhr from the GDR, but won the bronze medal against the Hungarian István Dubovszky . Weritschew also won bronze at the European and World Championships in 1989 . After that, his active sporting career ended.

Weritschew, who competed for Dynamo Chelyabinsk , won four Soviet championship titles in the heavyweight division and four in the open class. After his career he worked for the police and as a judo trainer.

Since 2007 the judo tournament Grigori Weritschew Memorial has been held annually in Chelyabinsk to commemorate the judoka who died in 2006.

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personal data
SURNAME Weritschew, Grigory Vladimirovich
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Веричев, Григорий Владимирович (Russian)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Soviet judoka
DATE OF BIRTH April 4th 1957
PLACE OF BIRTH Kungur
DATE OF DEATH May 25, 2006
Place of death Chelyabinsk