Alexander Beresch alternative transliteration Oleksandr Beresh, was a gymnast from Ukraine

Ukraine

Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...

 and Olympic medallist at the 2000 Sydney Games.

Coached by former Soviet World Champion Igor Korobchinsky

Igor Korobchinsky

Igor Korobchinsky is a former gymnast that represented the Soviet Union, the Commonwealth of Independent States and Ukraine.-External links:...

, Beresch began competing internationally for Ukraine in 1997, winning a bronze medal on the high bar at his first World Championships. Over the next several years he became the preeminent male gymnast on the Ukrainian team, medalling at the World Cup several times.

Beresch's breakout year was 2000; in this year he was the European all-around and high bar champion, as well as the bronze all-around medalist at the 2000 Olympics. His contributions to the Ukrainian team helped them win their first team medal, a silver, in Sydney. He continued to turn in strong performances after the Olympics, winning three medals at the 2001 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships

2001 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships

The 35th Artistic Gymnastics World Championships were held in Ghent, Belgium, in 2001 at the Flanders Sports Arena. This was the first Worlds at which the 6-3-3—six athletes per team, three compete, all three scores count—format was used in team finals...

 and winning the high bar gold at the 2000 World finals in Paris

Paris

Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

.

Accident

In February 2004, when Beresch was driving through Kiev, his Peugot was struck by a speeding car travelling at over 150 kilometres per hour. He was killed; his passenger, teammate Sergei Vyaltsev, survived with critical injuries.

Beresch's death was met with shock and sorrow by the international gymnastics community. Former Ukrainian Gymnastics Federation president Ludmilla Tourischeva

Ludmilla Tourischeva

Ludmilla Ivanovna Tourischeva is a former Russian gymnast and a nine-time Olympic medalist for the Soviet Union.Tourischeva began gymnastics in 1965 and began competing for the Soviet team as early as in 1967...

issued a public statement, saying "there are no words to express our grief." Several memorials to Beresch were held, including an emotional video tribute at the 2004 European Championships.

Sources

• Profile at the FIG website
• Profile at International Gymnast
• "Alexander Beresch dies"
• "Romanian men Europe's best" Inside Gymnastics magazine, April 16, 2004
• "Beresch loses life" Inside Gymnastics magazine, March 1, 2004