Olga Korbut

Korbut was born in Grodno to Valentin and Valentina Korbut. After World War II, the family moved to Grodno from Dubniaki{{cite web|url=http://www.knews.by/?p=34763|title=Варатын {{!}}|website=www.knews.by|date=16 January 2017 |language=ru-RU|access-date=15 October 2017|archive-date=15 October 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171015203804/http://www.knews.by/?p=34763|url-status=live}} (small town near Kalinkavichy). She started training at age 8, and entered a Belarusian sports school headed by coach Renald Knysh at age 9. There, Korbut's first trainer was Elena Volchetskaya, an Olympic gold medalist (1964),{{cite web |last=Doyle |first=Paul |title=50 stunning Olympic moments No47: Olga Korbut redefines gymnastics |date=6 July 2012 |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2012/jul/06/50-stunning-olympic-moments-olga-korbut |access-date=17 December 2016 |archive-date=5 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170805145312/https://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2012/jul/06/50-stunning-olympic-moments-olga-korbut |url-status=live }} but she was moved to Knysh's group a year later. Initially he found her "lazy and capricious" but he also saw potential in her great talent, unusually supple spine, and charisma. With him, she learned a difficult backward somersault on the balance beam. She debuted this at a competition in the USSR in 1969. The same year, Korbut completed a backflip-to-catch on the uneven bars; this was the first backward release move ever performed by a woman on bars.{{Citation |title=Olga Korbut Uneven Bars with Korbut Flip slow motion replay (1972 Olympics) | date=13 April 2010 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZYPcdj_wn4 |language=en |access-date=25 January 2023 |archive-date=28 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170228072539/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZYPcdj_wn4 |url-status=live }}

She finished fifth at her first competition in the 1969 USSR championships, where she was allowed to compete as a 14-year-old. The next year, she won a gold medal in the vault. Due to illness and injury, she was unable to compete in many of the competitions before the 1972 Summer Olympics.{{Cite web |url=https://www.olympics.com/en/news/tears-turn-to-joy-for-phenomenal-gymnast-korbut |title=Tears turn to joy for phenomenal gymnast Korbut |date=September 4, 1972 |website=olympics.com |access-date=February 21, 2025}}

File:Olga Korbut on a Stamp of Azerbaijan 386.jpgi stamp]]

At the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Korbut's acrobatics and open high-level gymnastics brought her much fame. During the Olympics, Korbut was one of the favorites for the all-around after her dynamic performance in the team competition, however she missed her mount on bars three times and the title went to teammate Ludmilla Tourischeva. That said, Korbut won three gold medals for the balance beam, floor exercise, and team competitions. In one of the most controversial finishes of all time, she took a silver medal in the uneven bars. Korbut's first attempt at her uneven bars routine was marred by several mistakes which all but ended her chances of winning a gold medal in the all-around. The next day, Korbut repeated the same routine in the event finals, although this time successfully. After the boards displayed a score of 9.8, the audience began to whistle and shout vulgar remarks at the judges in disapproval, believing her score to be too low. This carried on for several minutes but the judges refused to change their score.

{{quote box |width=27%|align=right|quote="When Olga Korbut captured the world's imagination on her way to three gold medals at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, she pioneered the essence of modern gymnastics: enchanting artistry married seamlessly with breathtaking, daring acrobatics." |source=–The Herald, 2015}}

Korbut is most famous for her uneven bars and balance beam routines, as well as her charismatic performances that captivated audiences.{{cite news |last=McCarthy |first=Brigid |title=40 Years Ago, Soviet Gymnast Olga Korbut Dazzled the World |url=http://www.pri.org/stories/2012-07-24/40-years-ago-soviet-gymnast-olga-korbut-dazzled-world |newspaper=PRI's The World |type=Radio broadcast |date=24 July 2012 |access-date=23 January 2014 |archive-date=5 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170805182935/https://www.pri.org/stories/2012-07-24/40-years-ago-soviet-gymnast-olga-korbut-dazzled-world |url-status=live }} In 1973, she won the Russian and World Student (i.e., University) Games, and a silver medal in the all-around at the European Championships.{{Cite web |url=https://www.gymnastics-history.com/2023/11/1973-tourischeva-sweeps-the-womens-european-championships/ |title=1973: Tourischeva Sweeps the Women’s European Championships |date=November 5, 2023 |website=gymnastics-history.com |access-date=February 21, 2025}}

At the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, Soviet coaches and officials had designated Korbut as the woman who could beat the Romanian prodigy, Nadia Comăneci, but Korbut was injured and her performances in the games were sub-par. She was overshadowed not only by Comăneci, but also by her own teammate Nellie Kim. She did collect a team gold medal, and an individual silver medal for the balance beam.

Korbut graduated from the Grodno Pedagogical Institute in 1977, became a teacher, and retired from gymnastic competition. She married Leonid Bortkevich, a member of Belarusian folk band Pesniary. The couple had a son, Richard, born in 1979. In 1988, Korbut became the first gymnast inducted into the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame.{{cite web| title=Olga Korbut| publisher=International Gymnastics Hall of Fame| url=http://www.ighof.com/honorees/1988_Olga_Korbut.php| access-date=14 May 2012| archive-date=4 August 2012| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120804185928/http://www.ighof.com/honorees/1988_Olga_Korbut.php| url-status=live}}

In 1991, she and her family immigrated to the United States, prompted by concerns about the aftereffects of the Chernobyl disaster on Belarus. They settled in New Jersey, where she taught gymnastics.{{cite news |last=Longman |first=Jere |title=Olga Korbut, Now A Fearful Mother, Is Enlisting Aid For Chernobyl Victims |url=http://articles.philly.com/1991-04-24/news/25777834_1_leonid-bortkevich-olga-korbut-foundation-chernobyl-victims |newspaper=The Philadelphia Inquirer |date=24 April 1991 |access-date=23 July 2013 |archive-date=19 April 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160419011218/http://articles.philly.com/1991-04-24/news/25777834_1_leonid-bortkevich-olga-korbut-foundation-chernobyl-victims |url-status=dead }} Two years later, the family moved to the U.S. state of Georgia, where she continued to coach. Korbut and Bortkevich divorced in 2000, the same year she became a naturalized U.S. citizen.{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-aug-28-sp-korbut28-story.html |title=Taking a Tumble |work=Los Angeles Times |author=Helene Elliot |access-date=15 January 2015 |archive-date=18 April 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150418122530/http://articles.latimes.com/2002/aug/28/sports/sp-korbut28 |url-status=live }}[https://web.archive.org/web/20131227192831/http://novosti24.by/sport/olga-korbut-hotya-ya-imeyu-amerikanskoe-grazhdanstvo-dusha-u-menya-vse-ravno-ostalas-belorusskoy.html Ольга КОРБУТ: "Хотя я имею американское гражданство, душа у меня все равно осталась белорусской»]. novosti24.by (27 November 2012) In 2002, she moved to Scottsdale, Arizona, to become head coach at Scottsdale Gymnastics and Cheerleading.[http://olgakorbut.com/olga-korbut-today/ Olga Korbut Today] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130119100812/http://olgakorbut.com/olga-korbut-today/ |date=19 January 2013 }}. Olgakorbut.com (31 April 2012). Retrieved on 18 July 2020.{{cite news |last=Davis |first=Kristina |title=A party for Olga's Kids. Korbut's program funds classes for children |newspaper=Arizona Republic |date=15 November 2002}} Korbut was also featured on an episode of Celebrity Boxing, which aired on May 22, 2002, with her opponent, Darva Conger, winning by unanimous decision.{{cite book|last1=Sagert |first1=Kelly Boyer |last2=Overman |first2=Steven J.|year=2006|title=Icons of Women's Sport |page=320|publisher=Greenwood |isbn=0313385483}} Since then, Korbut has worked with private gymnastics students and done motivational speaking.{{cite news |last=Smith |first=Christine |title=Olga Korbut: Golden girl of the 1972 Olympics looks back on her glory days |url=http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/334786/Olga-Korbut-Golden-girl-of-the-1972-Olympics-looks-back-on-her-glory-days |newspaper=The Daily Express |date=23 July 2012 |access-date=23 July 2013 |archive-date=18 January 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140118171124/http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/334786/Olga-Korbut-Golden-girl-of-the-1972-Olympics-looks-back-on-her-glory-days |url-status=live }}

During the 2012 Summer Olympics, in London, Korbut appeared on Twitter and Facebook, providing live, on-site commentary on the gymnastics competitions in the North Greenwich Arena. During the games, the Royal Opera House hosted an exhibition created in collaboration with the Olympic Museum in Lausanne, Switzerland, entitled The Olympic Journey, The Story of the Games.{{cite web |title=The Olympic Journey – Discover |url=http://www.roh.org.uk/about/the-olympic-journey/discover |publisher=Royal Opera House |access-date=31 July 2013 |archive-date=9 March 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140309011122/http://www.roh.org.uk/about/the-olympic-journey/discover |url-status=live }} Along with historical artifacts, the show featured the personal narratives of 16 Olympic medalists, including Korbut. Her appearance at the exhibition on August 3 of that year marked the 40th anniversary of her Olympic victories.{{cite web |last=Butler |first=Lottie |title=Legendary Olympic gymnast Olga Korbut at ROH: Olympic hero to meet visitors at The Olympic Journey |url=http://www.roh.org.uk/news/legendary-olympic-gymnast-olga-korbut-at-roh |publisher=Royal Opera House |date=1 August 2012 |access-date=31 July 2013 |archive-date=15 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201115035535/https://www.roh.org.uk/news/legendary-olympic-gymnast-olga-korbut-at-roh |url-status=live }} "I didn't even expect this," she said. "I am so honored to be here."{{cite interview |subject=Korbut, Olga |interviewer=Glen Levy |title=Olga Korbut's Olympic Journey |type=Interview |url=https://olympics.time.com/2012/08/03/olga-korbuts-olympic-journey/ |format=Video |publisher=Time |date=3 August 2012 |access-date=22 July 2013 |archive-date=26 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220726153727/https://olympics.time.com/2012/08/03/olga-korbuts-olympic-journey/ |url-status=live }}

In 2017, Korbut sold her 1972 and 1976 Olympic medals, among 32 lots (including two golds and a silver from the Munich Olympics), which fetched $333,500 at Heritage Auctions.Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/VQtlG29VBl4 Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20200713051910/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQtlG29VBl4 Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{Citation|last=Olga Korbut|title=OLGA KORBUT Trans World Sport|date=8 December 2017|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQtlG29VBl4&t=11m20s|access-date=26 March 2018}}{{cbignore}}[http://tass.ru/sport/4052591 Советская гимнастка Корбут продала олимпийские медали с аукциона на общую сумму $230 тыс.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170228075307/http://tass.ru/sport/4052591 |date=28 February 2017 }} tass.ru (27 February 2017){{cite web |title=Former Soviet gymnast Olga Korbut sells Olympic medals to 'save her from hunger' |url=http://www.foxsports.com.au/olympics/former-soviet-gymnast-olga-korbut-sells-olympic-medals-to-save-her-from-hunger/news-story/7387e7d145fe339d5c14da81fc5cb791?nk=5e06a496aa04d30331f1c1db0173a39b-1488295367 |work=Fox Sports |date=28 February 2017 |access-date=28 February 2017 |archive-date=1 March 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170301092458/http://www.foxsports.com.au/olympics/former-soviet-gymnast-olga-korbut-sells-olympic-medals-to-save-her-from-hunger/news-story/7387e7d145fe339d5c14da81fc5cb791?nk=5e06a496aa04d30331f1c1db0173a39b-1488295367 |url-status=live }}{{cite web|last1=Siemaszko|first1=Corky|title=Former Soviet Gymnast Olga Korbut Says Goodbye to Her Medals|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/former-soviet-gymnast-olga-korbut-says-goodbye-her-medals-n726726|website=nbcnews.com|date=28 February 2017 |publisher=NBC News|access-date=2 April 2017|archive-date=3 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210503091421/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/former-soviet-gymnast-olga-korbut-says-goodbye-her-medals-n726726|url-status=live}}

In 1999, she spoke out about the sexual assault and rape she had suffered at the hands of her coach, Renald Knysh, which he denied. "The truth was that many of the gymnasts were not just sport machines, but sexual slaves to the trainer," Korbut stated. "We were not just potential gymnasts, but future concubines for himself." Later, in 2018, Korbut appeared on a TV show, in which she again spoke out about several incidents of sexual assault by her coach. As a result of her speaking out publicly, several other gymnasts, who had also trained under Knysh, came forward to reveal their own similar experiences of sexual assault.{{cite web |title=#MeToo In Belarus: Ex-Teammates Bolster Korbut's Sexual-Assault Charges Against Coach |url=https://www.rferl.org/a/metoo-in-belarus-ex-teammates-bolster-korbut-s-sexual-assault-charges-against-coach/29230312.html |publisher=Radio Free Europe |date=16 May 2018 |access-date=16 May 2018 |archive-date=28 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210328041429/https://www.rferl.org/a/metoo-in-belarus-ex-teammates-bolster-korbut-s-sexual-assault-charges-against-coach/29230312.html |url-status=live }}

In 2021, Korbut was named by Carnegie Corporation of New York as an honoree of the Great Immigrants Award.{{Cite web |title=Olga Korbut |url=https://www.carnegie.org/awards/honoree/olga-korbut/ |access-date=11 June 2024 |website=Carnegie Corporation of New York}}

File:Madame Tussauds London 00813 Nevit.jpg in London]]

Korbut, who has won four Olympic gold medals, is best known for her move, the Korbut flip, a backflip performed on the uneven parallel bars, starting from a standing position on the high bar and then catching the same bar from below on the under swing. She also achieved the flip on the 4" balance bar onto the straddle position and later the flip landing on her feet. Named after Korbut since she was the first to perform the skill at an international competition in 1972, the move has since been made illegal in the Olympic Code of Points.

After the 1972 Olympic competition, she also met United States President Richard Nixon at the White House. About the meeting, Korbut said: "He told me that my performance in Munich did more for reducing the political tension during the Cold War between our two countries than the embassies were able to do in five years."{{cite book |last1=Cousineau |first1=Phil |year=2003 |title=The Olympic Odyssey: Rekindling the True Spirit of the Great Games |page=[https://archive.org/details/olympicodysseyre0000cous/page/159 159] |publisher=Quest Books |isbn=0835608336 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/olympicodysseyre0000cous/page/159 }} In addition to greatly publicizing gymnastics worldwide, she also contributed to a marked change in the tenor of the sport itself. Prior to 1972, the athletes were generally older and the focus was on elegance rather than acrobatics.{{cite web | last=Tennent | first=Callum | title=Olga Korbut: 'The Sparrow from Minsk' who changed gymnastics | url=https://edition.cnn.com/2012/08/06/sport/olympics-olga-korbut-gymnastics-munich-anniversary | publisher=CNN | date=6 August 2012 | access-date=22 July 2013 | archive-date=5 August 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170805144739/http://edition.cnn.com/2012/08/06/sport/olympics-olga-korbut-gymnastics-munich-anniversary | url-status=live }} In the decade after Korbut's Olympic debut, the emphasis was reversed. Korbut, in her 1972, gold-medal Olympics, at {{height|ft=4|in=11}} and {{convert|82|lb}}, exemplified the deliberate and purposeful trend toward smaller women in the sport.{{cite book|last1=Howell |first1= Colin D.|year=2001|title=Blood, Sweat, and Cheers: Sport and the Making of Modern Canada |url=https://archive.org/details/bloodsweatcheers0000howe |url-access=registration |page=[https://archive.org/details/bloodsweatcheers0000howe/page/122 122]|publisher=University of Toronto Press, Scholarly Publishing Division |isbn=0802082483}}

Her 1972 Olympic achievement earned her the BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year and ABC's Wide World of Sports title of Athlete of the Year.{{cite web |url=http://www.espn.com/abcsports/wwos/athletesoftheyear.html |publisher=ESPN |title=Wide World of Sports Athletes of the Year |access-date=24 October 2021 |archive-date=26 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211126234142/https://www.espn.com/abcsports/wwos/athletesoftheyear.html |url-status=live }} In a UK poll conducted by Channel 4 in 2002 the public voted "Olga Korbut charms the world" No.46 in the list of the 100 Greatest Sporting Moments.{{Cite web|url=http://www.channel4.com/entertainment/tv/microsites/G/greatest_sporting/results.html|title=100 Greatest Sporting Moments – Results|year=2002|publisher=Channel 4|location=London|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020204090913/http://www.channel4.com/entertainment/tv/microsites/G/greatest_sporting/results.html|archive-date=4 February 2002|url-status=dead|access-date=8 August 2019}}

With her display of artistry and grace, Korbut, along with Nadia Comăneci, brought unprecedented popularity to the sport in the early to mid-1970s,{{cite news|title=Head over heels|url=https://www.theguardian.com/theobserver/2001/jan/14/features.magazine47|access-date=8 January 2022|work=The Guardian|quote=In the early to mid-70s, with ambassadors like Korbut and Comaneci, gymnastics was at its popular peak.|archive-date=8 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230108143313/https://www.theguardian.com/theobserver/2001/jan/14/features.magazine47|url-status=live}} attributes which are now seen as a lost art in gymnastics with athleticism taking precedence.{{cite news |title=Lost art: Powerhouse physiques winning out over spellbinding grace |url=https://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/13184916.lost-art-powerhouse-physiques-winning-spellbinding-grace/ |access-date=8 January 2022 |work=Herald Scotland |quote=Unlike Nadia Comaneci and Olga Korbut, modern gymnasts such as Simone Biles are rewarded for their athleticism more than their artistry... the spellbinding artistry that not only gave the sport its name, but brought it global fame. |archive-date=4 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221004225507/https://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/13184916.lost-art-powerhouse-physiques-winning-spellbinding-grace/ |url-status=live }}

Korbut has one eponymous vault listed in the Code of Points. She also performed the Korbut flip on both the uneven bars and the balance beam. The uneven bars version was removed from the Code of Points after standing on top of the high bar was banned. The balance beam version is not officially listed under her name due to the low difficulty value.{{cite web |title=Women’s Artistic Gymnastics – 2025-2028 Code of Points |url=https://www.gymnastics.sport/publicdir/rules/files/en_1.1%20-%20WAG%20COP%202025-2028.pdf |website=International Gymnastics Federation |date=22 April 2024 |access-date=12 January 2025}}

In a Peanuts comic strip published on 15 May 1973, the character Snoopy is seen doing balance beam positions with flawless precision on top of his doghouse for three panels until coming to a rest in the fourth one saying: "Olga Korbut has been bugging me for lessons!"{{cite web|url=https://www.gocomics.com/peanuts/1973/05/15|title=GoComics.com Peanuts webpage – May 15, 1973 strip|access-date=15 August 2018|archive-date=15 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180815200947/https://www.gocomics.com/peanuts/1973/05/15|url-status=live}}

In X-Men #99 (June 1976), Nightcrawler makes a slight reference to Korbut's gymnastic skills in comparison to his own, to which Colossus, a fellow Soviet, admonishes him for it.X-Men #99 (June 1976), Marvel Comics

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• {{cite book|last1=Korbut|first1=Olga|author2=Ellen Emerson-White|title=My Story: The Autobiography of Olga Korbut|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=n8LHAAAACAAJ|year=1992|publisher=Random House|isbn=978-0-7126-5495-1}}

{{Commons category|Olga Korbut}}

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• {{Olympics.com}}
• {{Olympedia}}
• {{NOC Belarus|korbut-olga-valentinovna-gimnastika-sportivnaya|Olga Korbut}}
• {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180315172907/https://www.biography.com/people/olga-korbut-9368378 |date=dmy |title=Olga Korbut at Biography.com}}
• [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2NGqI6FqeQ Incredible Performance From Olga Korbut 'Darling Of Munich' – Munich 1972 Olympics] – The Olympic Channel
• [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrDtXx87C38 Gymnast Olga Korbut charms the World – Faster, Higher, Stronger – BBC Two] – BBC

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