Michael Kalganov, The 2000 Sydney Olympics

Michael Kalganov won Israel's 4th medal in the Olympics. Kalganov won a bronze medal for kayaking. Kalganov advanced to the finals and came third in the 500-meter flat-water kayak. Michael Kalganov grew up kayaking the rivers of the Uzbekistan, but now his kayak streaks across the still blue water of the Sea of Galilee in Israel. "I feel that Israel is my home", said Michael Kalganov the week after winning a bronze medal. In interviews with following his win, Kalganov said that although some of his friends had immigrated to the US and Germany, he believes that as a Jew his place is here in Israel. Michael Kalganov, who arrived in Israel from Uzbekistan five years ago, is the only Israeli that won a medal in the Sydney Olympics.


Michael Kalganov