Russian Olympics Coach Ovchinnikov Found Dead In Croatia

Russian women's volleyball Coach SERGEI OVCHINNIKOV, who coached the team at the London Games, was found dead on Wednesday, "prompting speculation that he committed suicide," according to Gennady Fyodorov of REUTERS. Ovchinnikov's club team Dynamo Moscow posted on its website, "Sergei Ovchinnikov suddenly passed away at the team's (pre-season) training camp in Croatia." Croatian state news agency Hina quoted a police spokesperson as saying that a foreign citizen "had been found dead in a hotel in the city of Porec without giving his identity." Croatian media reported that the 43-year-old coach "committed suicide in his hotel room by hanging himself." At the Olympics, the Russians "were considered leading medal contenders" but lost in the quarter-finals to eventual winners Brazil. Ovchinnikov was "heavily criticized" for the team's Olympic failure (REUTERS, 8/29).