Nikolay Khrenkov

Like many other bobsledders, Nikolay Khrenkov was initially a track and field athlete, specializing in the decathlon. But not finding success in decathlon, Khrenkov switched to bobsledding in 2008 on the advice of his coach. As a pusher, Khrenkov was selected to the Russian national team in 2009 and débuted on the World Cup circuit in 2010. Teaming up with Filipp Yegorov, Dmitry Trunenkov and pilot Aleksandr Zubkov, Khrenkov won silvers at the 2011 and 2012 European Championships, while finishing fourth at the 2011 World Championships. The team also won four World Cup races in seasons 2010/11 and 2011/12, and finished second overall in the 2010/11 World Cup standings, but Khrenkov was replaced by pusher Maksim Mokrousov in mid-2011/12 season due to illness and Zubkov’s crew went on to win the overall World Cup during that season.

Khrenkov also won his only Russian title in 2011, in the four-man with Yegorov, Trunenkov and Zubkov. After recovering from illness, Khrenkov teamed up with Denis Moiseychenkov, Maksim Belugin and pilot Aleksandr Kasyanov to finish 11th at the 2012 World Championships. Khrenkov made his last international appearance at the 2014 Olympics, where he was a member of the Russian #3 team that finished 15th. Outside of sports, Khrenkov worked at Zheleznogorsk Mining and Chemical Combine, a factory that produces plutonium for nuclear weapons and nuclear power plants and he was also a fitness instructor at Yubileyny Sanatorium in Zheleznogorsk. On 2 June 2014, around 1 PM, a car driven by Khrenkov was in a head-on collision with another car at the 22nd kilometer of the Krasnoyarsk-Zheleznogorsk Highway near Podgorny village. Both drivers died instantly on the scene.