A monument to Galina Prozumenshchikova was unveiled in Sevastopol

November 26 is the birthday of the first Olympic swimming champion in the history of Soviet sports, Galina Prozumenshchikova. On this day, the governor of Sevastopol, Mikhail Razvozhaev, opened a monument to the legendary athlete next to the Aquatic Sports Palace. The event was attended by State Duma deputy Tatyana Lobach, the author of the sculpture Igor Egunov, Galina Prozumenshchikova’s daughter Irina Bergallo, Sevastopol athletes, and students of city sports schools.

Today we have a truly historic event. We have decided that our updated pool in our sports and recreation complex named after the 200th anniversary of Sevastopol will bear the name of Galina Nikolaevna. Not every city can boast of the first Olympic champion in the history of the country, which was Galina Nikolaevna. She became a guiding star for countless athletes who have already followed in her footsteps and began to defend our Motherland at various championships. I am proud that Sevastopol has such names, such a great sports history, and I am confident that we can all increase it together,” the press service of the Government of Sevastopol quotes Mikhail Razvozhaev.

Tatyana Lobach expressed confidence that the monument to Galina Prozumenshchikova will become a symbol of their future victories for the younger generation of athletes:

It’s a pleasure to open a monument to Galina Nikolaevna near our wonderful water sports palace. I hope that for the guys-athletes who chose swimming, it will become a symbol of new victories. Thanks to everyone involved who is restoring the correct history of the city of Sevastopolsaid the State Duma deputy.

The monument to the Sevastopol athlete was erected on behalf of the head of the city. The image of the sculpture was proposed by Sevastopol sculptor, art school teacher Igor Egunov.

I relied on the monument to David in Florence — and for good reason. He is a symbol of Florence, the same heroic image as Galina Nikolaevna is with us. Only he defeated Goliath, and she defeated the sea. After all, she was drowning! And after that I challenged myself. And at the age of 16 she achieved what many do not achieve in a lifetimesaid Igor Egunov.

The sculpture of the athlete is located at the intersection of pedestrian paths and fits well into the park area near the swimming pool of the sports and recreation complex named after the 200th anniversary of Sevastopol.

The sculpture and memorial plaque are made of bronze, the pedestal is made of reinforced concrete with light marble finishing, which guarantees its durability. The height of the sculptural composition with the pedestal is 3 m 35 cm.

I am very pleased that everyone has gathered here, and our beautiful, heroic city celebrated the glorious deeds of my mother, who truly was a star. And now a beautiful sculpture has been opened, personifying the desire for victory and will, giving all young, young athletes hope that they, too, will one day become the same great peoplesaid the athlete’s daughter Irina Bergallo.

Galina Prozumenshchikova spent her childhood in Sevastopol: here she went to school, and in 1959 she began swimming. In 1961, Galina fulfilled the first category standard, and a year later she became a master of sports. In May 1963, in a friendly competition with Australian swimmers, she managed to set a new all-Union record — 2.51.5 seconds at the Olympic distance of 200 meters.

At the beginning of 1964, at a match between swimmers of the USSR and Great Britain, she set world records in the two-hundred-meter dash — 2.47.4 and in the 200-yard breaststroke — 2.47.7, and at the USSR-GDR match she exceeded her own achievement in the 200 meters with a result of 2.45.4.

At the Olympic Games in Tokyo in 1964, Galina Prozumenshchikova set a new Olympic record — 2:46.4. She became the first Soviet swimmer to reach the highest step of the Olympic podium, where she was called the “Golden Fish”.

This name — «Golden Fish» — was given to the citywide project, which started on behalf of Mikhail Razvozhaev in 2024 on the basis of two swimming pools in the sports and recreation complex in Inkerman and in the Aquatic Sports Palace named after Galina Prozumenshchikova.

Children from 5 to 10 years old are invited to participate in the project, including children with developmental disabilities, disabilities, and disabled children. Since 2025, two additional groups have been opened for children of participants in a special military operation. In 2024, 743 children, including 130 disabled children, received their first skills and were able to confidently swim 10 meters independently using the front crawl method, master safety precautions and the ability to apply knowledge while in the swimming pool and in open water. This year, 680 children have already completed training.

source: press service of the Government of Sevastopol