A comprehensive article has been released about Anatoly Parfenov, the Soviet Olympic wrestling champion who won gold in the heavyweight division after just five years of classical wrestling training. Parfenov was a farmer's son of extraordinary strength who served as both an assault soldier and tank operator during World War II, meeting victory in Berlin. The piece includes interviews with his son and students, and a visit to his hometown village of Dvornikovo outside Moscow where locals still remember him vividly. Stories include Parfenov crushing a pickpocket's hand on a train until it crackled, carrying buckets of cabbage with one finger, single-handedly beating multiple bandits who terrorized motorists, and hauling logs from the forest either on his shoulders or by pulling sleds and carts like a horse. He also coached the great Nikolai Balboshin and was remembered by villagers as forbidding profanity and smoking among local children while organizing football games and swimming sessions.
