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Boris Shakhlin

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Boris Shakhlin was a legendary gymnast. He was one of the best in the world. People remember him for his amazing skill and many medals.

He won 13 medals at the Summer Olympics. Seven of those were gold medals. He was the top athlete at the 1960 Summer Olympics. This made him a true star of the Games. He also won 14 medals at the World Championships. His talent brought him great pride and honor.

Gymnastics requires great strength and focus. Boris began this sport when he was 12 years old.

He worked hard to master many different moves. He won gold medals at three Olympic Games in a row. This is a very hard thing to do. He was the 1958 all-around World Champion. In 1960, he became the Olympic all-around champion too. He showed the world what a great gymnast could do.

Boris was born in Ishim in 1932.

He grew up in the Russian SFSR. He later lived in Kyiv for many years. Because of his great work, he became an honorary citizen of both Ishim and Kyiv. He received many special awards for his talent. In 1956, he was given the Red Banner of Labor. In 1960, he received the Order of Lenin. These awards showed how much people respected him.

Boris held a very special record for a long time.

He had the most Olympic medals for any male athlete. He kept this record until the 1980 Summer Olympics. That is when Nikolai Andrianov won his 14th and 15th medals. Boris was so famous that Mongolia put his face on a stamp in 1969. In 2002, he was put into the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame. This is a place for the best gymnasts ever.

Even after he stopped competing, Boris stayed in the world of sport.

He retired from competition at age 35 after a heart attack. He did not leave gymnastics behind. In 1968, he joined the FIG Men's Technical Committee. He worked on this committee until 1992. Later, he became a teacher at the University of Kyiv. He spent his life sharing what he knew about his sport. Boris Shakhlin remains a great name in gymnastics history.

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