A Brief Biography of Alexander Ovechkin - 864 Words

Born September 17th, 1985, to Mikhail Ovechkin, a former soccer player, and Tatyana Ovechkina, an two-time Olympic gold medalist with the Russian’s women’s basketball team, Alexander Ovechkin seemed destined to become an amazing athlete. One of the most debated, yet amusing hockey players currently playing in the National Hockey League, Ovechkin’s incredible talent, speed, physical authority, and youthful enthusiasm is something that hockey fans can’t seem to get enough of. Like most hockey players, Ovechkin found his passion for the game very young. He picked up his first hockey stick at two years old, and soon obsessively getting his hands on anything that pertained to hockey, while also watching hundreds of games on T.V. By eight years old, Ovechkin’s older brother Sergei saw a talent in himself that everyone else had yet to see, so he introduced him to organized hockey and enrolled him in hockey school. He then took on the responsibility of gett ing Alex whatever he needed for hockey as his parents needed assistance. Tragically, Sergei never got to see Alex play in a professional game in how he was killed in a car accident in his early 20’s. Alex to this day still credits all of his success in hockey to his older brother, and whenever he scores he will often kiss his glove and point to his sky to acknowledge him. Different from the U.S., Russia has youth programs that are interconnected with the professional game. This helps by getting young players that show potential