Alzhan Zharmukhamedov dead at 78, Cause of Death

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One of the final players from the Soviet Union team that defeated the United States in Munich in 1972, Alzhan Zharmukhamedov, died at the age of 78 after a protracted battle with a sickness.

He moved to Moscow in 1969 after being born in Uzbekistan, where he spent 11 seasons playing for CSKA. He won 10 USSR titles and the European Champions Cup (1971) there.

The Soviet Union team led by Zharmukhamedov, most crucially, won the first non-American gold medal in the 1972 Olympic Games. He was also the 1976 Olympic bronze medalist.

In addition, he earned silver (1978) and bronze (1970) medals at the World Cup and won three EuroBasket titles (1967, 1971, and 1979).