Russian speed skater and four-time Olympic gold medalist, he won two golds in 1956 and two in 1960.
He won bronze medals at the 1954 and 1956 World Championships.
He set seven world records over the course of his career.
He married Lydia Grishin in 1959.
He won two gold medals at the 1960 Winter Olympics where skier Sixten Jernberg also won gold.
