https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shavarsh_Karapetyan Jump to content [ ] Main menu Main menu move to sidebar hide Navigation * Main page * Contents * Current events * Random article * About Wikipedia * Contact us Contribute * Help * Learn to edit * Community portal * Recent changes * Upload file [wikipe] Wikipedia The Free Encyclopedia Search [ ] Search [ ] Appearance * Donate * Create account * Log in [ ] Personal tools * Donate * Create account * Log in Pages for logged out editors learn more * Contributions * Talk Contents move to sidebar hide * (Top) * 1 Biography * 2 1974 bus incident * 3 1976 trolleybus incident * 4 Swimming career * 5 1985 burning building incident * 6 Later life * 7 See also * 8 References [ ] Toggle the table of contents Shavarsh Karapetyan [ ] 21 languages * Bashk'ortsa * Belaruskaia * B'lgarski * Cestina * Deutsch * Eesti * Ellenika * Espanol * frsy * Francais * Hayeren * Hrvatski * Makedonski * Norsk bokmal * pNjaabii * Russkii * Slovenscina * Tatarcha / tatarca * Ukrayins'ka * yyidysh * Zhong Wen Edit links * Article * Talk [ ] English * Read * Edit * View history [ ] Tools Tools move to sidebar hide Actions * Read * Edit * View history General * What links here * Related changes * Upload file * Special pages * Permanent link * Page information * Cite this page * Get shortened URL * Download QR code Print/export * Download as PDF * Printable version In other projects * Wikidata item Appearance move to sidebar hide From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Armenian finswimmer (born 1953) Shavarsh Karapetyan [220px-Shavarsh_Karapetyan_2014] Shavarsh Karapetyan in 2014 Personal information Nationality Armenian Born May 19, 1953 (1953-05-19) (age 71) Kirovakan, Armenian SSR, Soviet Union Sport Country Soviet Union Sport Finswimming Shavarsh Vladimiri (Vladimirovich)^[1] Karapetyan (Armenian: Shavarsh Karapetyan; born May 19, 1953) is a retired former Soviet finswimmer, best known for saving the lives of 20 people in a 1976 incident in Yerevan.^[2] Biography [edit] Karapetyan was born on May 19, 1953, in Armenia's third largest city of Kirovakan (now called Vanadzor again), then part of the Soviet Union. His family moved to Yerevan in 1964, where Shavarsh finished eight years of school and then attended a technical school for auto-mechanics. On the advice of family friends, he started to learn swimming at a young age. He later switched to finswimming. In 1975-1976, Karapetyan served in a Soviet Air Defence Forces base in the Baku military district.^[3] 1974 bus incident [edit] In 1974 Shavarsh was riding a bus when the driver pulled over to check on a mechanical problem. The engine was left running and the bus suddenly started rolling down towards a mountain gorge. Karapetyan broke down the partition separating the passengers from the driver's compartment, then took control of the steering wheel and turned the bus away from the cliff.^[2] 1976 trolleybus incident [edit] On September 16, 1976, Karapetyan was jogging alongside Yerevan Lake with his brother Kamo. Karapetyan had just completed his usual finswimming distance of 20 km (12 mi) when he heard the sound of a crash and saw a sinking trolleybus.^[4] The trolleybus had lost control and fallen from a dam wall, laying at the bottom of the reservoir some 25 meters (80 ft) offshore at a depth of 10 meters (33 ft).^[5] Despite the challenging conditions of sewage-infested waters and poor visibility due to silt, Karapetyan dived in and used his legs to kick open the back window of the trolleybus. He managed to rescue 46 out of the 92 passengers onboard, saving the lives of 20 individuals.^[6] In total he dove 20 times, each dive lasting about 25 seconds, and pulled out a total of 37 people. 9 others escaped on their own through the window he broke. Unfortunately only 20 of the 46 survived, despite medical attention at the scene.^[2] The combined effect of multiple lacerations from glass shards led to Karapetyan's hospitalization for 45 days,^[5] as he developed pneumonia and sepsis. Subsequent lung complications prevented Karapetyan from continuing his sports career.^[6] He did, however, insist on one last meet despite his damaged lungs, and managed to set a new world record despite the pain.^[2] Karapetyan's achievement was not immediately recognized. All related photos were kept at the district attorney's office and were only published two years later. He was awarded the Medal "For the Salvation of the Drowning" and the Order of the Badge of Honor. He became a household name in the USSR on October 12, 1982, when Komsomolskaya Pravda published the article on his feat, entitled "The Underwater Battle of the Champion". This publication revealed that he was the rescuer; and he received about 60,000 letters.^[citation needed] Swimming career [edit] Parts of this article (those related to Swimming career) need [42px] to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (August 2023) During his career, Karapetyan became a Merited Master of Sports of the USSR and an eleven-time world record-breaker in finswimming. He acquired 7 Soviet championships, 13 European championships, and 17 world championships for a total of 37 gold medals by the time he retired at the age of 24.^[2] In 1982, Karapetyan was awarded a UNESCO "Fair Play" letter of congratulations.^[7] He has also coached his son Tigran and headed the Shavarsh Karapetyan Foundation to support young swimmers.^[2] 1985 burning building incident [edit] On February 15, 1985, Karapetyan was near the Karen Demirchyan Complex when a fire broke out, trapping people inside. He came to the aid of firefighters and participated in the rescue of multiple people. Once again, he was badly hurt with severe burns and spent a long time in the hospital.^[8]^[9]^[10] Later life [edit] The main belt asteroid 3027 Shavarsh, discovered by Nikolai Chernykh in 1978 at the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory, was named after him (and approved by the MPC in September 1986).^[11]^[1] Karapetyan moved to Moscow where he founded a shoe company called "Second Breath". He regularly visits Armenia and the Nagorno-Karabakh .^[12] Karapetyan took part in the 2014 Winter Olympics torch relay for the second stage of the run. He was passed the torch in Moscow and carried it towards Krasnogorsk.^[13] The next day, Karapetyan carried the torch for a second time. He stated in an interview, "I was carrying the torch for Russia and for Armenia."^[14] See also [edit] * Trolleybuses in Yerevan SS Accident References [edit] 1. ^ ^a ^b "Minor Planet Circulars (M. P. C.) 11159" (PDF). 18 September 1986. Retrieved 22 October 2017. 2. ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f "Twenty-Five Seconds Per Life". Aurora Prize for Awakening Humanity. Retrieved 2023-04-30. 3. ^ Biografiia Shavarsha Karapetiana (in Russian). RIA Novosti. 8 October 2013. Retrieved 18 December 2013. 4. ^ Agentstvo pechati "Novosti" (1985). USSR Yearbook. The Agency. p. 69. 5. ^ ^a ^b "Soviet Champion Saves 20 Lives, 1976". Yahoo Voices. Archived from the original on 2014-07-28. 6. ^ ^a ^b "The Plunge". Grantland.com. Retrieved 2017-12-11. 7. ^ "Fair Play Award Winners". International Fair Play Committee. Archived from the original on October 12, 2013. 8. ^ "40 years ago swimming champion Shavarsh Karapetyan saved 20 lives". Horizon Weekly. Armenian Revolutionary Federation Canadian Central Committee. 16 September 2016. Retrieved 12 August 2023. 9. ^ "Shavarsh Karapetian naznachen sovetnikom glavy Bashkortostana". Bashinform.rf (in Russian). Aktsionernoe obshchestvo <>. Retrieved 12 August 2023. 10. ^ Okoth, Simon (2017). Responding to Black Swans: Why Ordinary Citizens Matter. WestBow Press. p. 57. ISBN 978-1-5127-8723-8. 11. ^ Schmadel, Lutz (2003). Dictionary of Minor Planet Names. Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN 978-3-540-00238-3 - via Google Books. 12. ^ Shavarsh Karapetyan. <> nor termin e (in Armenian). NEWS.am Sport. 8 October 2013. Retrieved 8 October 2013. 13. ^ Olimpiiskii ogon' potukh vo vremia probega po Kremliu. Forbes (in Russian). 6 October 2013. Retrieved 7 October 2013. 14. ^ Shavarsh Karapetyane erkrord angam masnakts`el e Soch`ii Olimpiakan khagheri p`okhants`owmavazk`in (in Armenian). NEWS.am Sport. 8 October 2013. Retrieved 8 October 2013. * v * t * e Finswimming * Australia By country * Great Britain * United States * Finswimming World Championships + 2011 + 2013 + 2016 + 2018 + 2021 o 2021 indoor o 2021 outdoor + 2022 + 2024 * Finswimming at the World Games + 2009 Competitions + 2013 + 2017 + 2022 * Asian Indoor Games + 2007 + 2009 * Southeast Asian Games + 2009 + 2011 + 2021 + 2023 * Bolivarian Games + 2013 * Texas Open Finswimming Invitational * Joel Armas * Valentina Artemyeva * Peppo Biscarini Finswimmers * Misty Hyman * Shavarsh Karapetyan * Flori Lang * Vitalina Simonova * World records * Continental records + Europe Records * National records + Great Britain + United States * Commonwealth records * CMAS * National federations + AUF + BUSA + FEDAS + FFESSM Organisations + NOB + TSSF + USOA * Other organisations + British Finswimming Association + Texas Finswimming Association * Competitive swimwear * Diving mask * Diving suit Equipment * Monofin * Fins * Snorkel * Scuba set * Underwater sports * Snorkeling Related articles * Freediving * Scuba diving * # Category: Finswimming * # Commons: Category:Finswimming * Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title= Shavarsh_Karapetyan&oldid=1269340649" Categories: * 1953 births * Living people * Soviet male swimmers * Armenian male swimmers * People from Vanadzor * 1976 in the Soviet Union * Finswimmers * Soviet Armenians * Honoured Masters of Sport of the USSR Hidden categories: * CS1 uses Russian-language script (ru) * CS1 Russian-language sources (ru) * CS1 uses Armenian-language script (hy) * CS1 Armenian-language sources (hy) * Articles with short description * Short description is different from Wikidata * Pages using Infobox sportsperson with unknown parameters * Articles containing Armenian-language text * All articles with unsourced statements * Articles with unsourced statements from December 2013 * Wikipedia articles in need of updating from August 2023 * All Wikipedia articles in need of updating * This page was last edited on 14 January 2025, at 05:41 (UTC). * Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License; additional terms may apply. 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