Oleg Vladimirovich Blokhin is a Ukrainian football player and football coach.
Place of Birth, Education
He was born on November 5, 1952 in Kyiv.
He received his higher education at the Kyiv State Institute of Physical Culture. He also studied at the Faculty of International Relations of Taras Shevchenko University of Kyiv, where he completed four courses.
Football career
He played as a striker.
In the period from 1969 to 1988, he played for Dynamo Kyiv and for the USSR national team. Later, in 1988 – 1989, he played as part of the Austrian club “Vorwärts”, and during 1989 – 1990 – for the Cypriot team “Aris”.
He became the champion of the USSR in 1971, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1980, 1981, 1985 and 1986.
He won the USSR Cup in 1974, 1978, 1982, 1985 and 1987.
He won the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup twice – in 1975 and 1986. He also won the UEFA Super Cup in 1975.
He was recognized as the best football player of the USSR in 1973, 1974 and 1975 according to the results of a poll by the weekly “Football”.
In 1975, he received the Ballon d’Or as the best football player in Europe.
In 2009, he was awarded the Golden Foot Award.
Coaching career
Blokhin began his coaching career in 1990, heading the Greek club Olympiacos from Piraeus, where he worked until 1993.
In the 1993-1994 season, he was the head coach of PAOK Thessaloniki.
During 1994 – 1997 he headed the Athens “Ionikos”.
In 1998 – 1999 he coached another club from Athens – AEK.
In the period from 1999 to 2002, he was a coach-consultant of Odessa “Chornomorets”.
In 2003 – 2007 he headed the national team of Ukraine. Under his leadership, the team took part in the final part of the World Cup for the first time in the history of independent Ukraine – in 2006 it reached the quarterfinals, entering the top eight teams of the tournament.
After an unsuccessful attempt to qualify for Euro 2008, he left the post of head coach of the national team.
Soon he signed a contract with the Moskva club. In the 2008 season, the team took 9th place in the Russian championship. The contract with the club was terminated on November 26 of the same year by mutual consent.
In the 2009/2010 season, he worked as a sports director of the Odessa “Chornomorets” national football team of Ukraine.
From September 25, 2012 to April 2014, he held the position of head coach of Dynamo Kyiv.
In the period from August 2021 to 2024, he headed the Committee of National Teams of the Ukrainian Football Association.
Political Activities
In 1998 – 2002 he was a People’s Deputy of Ukraine of the III convocation. He entered the parliament on the list of the All-Ukrainian Association “Community”. He worked as a member of the parliamentary committee on youth policy, physical culture, sports and tourism. During the first year he was in the party faction, the next two years – in the Batkivshchyna faction.
In the summer of 2001, he joined the faction of the Communist Party of Ukraine.
In 2002 – 2006 he was a people’s deputy of Ukraine of the IV convocation. He served as Chairman of the Subcommittee on the Olympic and Paralympic Movement, as well as Sports of the Highest Achievements as part of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Youth Policy, Physical Culture, Sports and Tourism. He entered the parliament on the list of the “Communist Party of Ukraine”. Five months later, he moved to the faction of the Social Democratic Party of Ukraine (SDPU(o)).
In 2003, he became a member of the political council of the SDPU(o).
During the parliamentary elections of 2006, he ran for the Rada on the list of the “Opposition Bloc “NOT YES!”, but the bloc did not overcome the three percent barrier, receiving only 1.01% of the vote.
Titles and awards
In 1975, Blokhin was awarded the title of Honored Master of Sports.
In 2002, he was awarded the Order of Merit of the III degree, and in 2004 – the Order of the II degree.
On August 22, 2021, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy presented him with the National Legend of Ukraine award.
Marital Status
Blokhin was married twice. His first wife was gymnast Irina. During the marriage in 1983, the couple had a daughter, Iryna.
The second wife is Angela. The couple has two daughters – Anna was born in 2000, Ekaterina – in 2002.
His father, Vladimir Blokhin, at one time served as deputy chairman of the Kyiv City Council of the All-Union Sports Society “Labor Reserves”.
Mother, Kateryna Adamenko, had the title of Honored Master of Sports in athletics.
