The 1980 equestrian games were not a top competition, like the other Olympic Games, because almost all the top riders missed the competition due to the boycott. In the eventing competition, the Soviets were favored in both the individual and team competition, as in the other equestrian events at the 1980 Olympics, but did not meet expectations. The Soviets were upset by Italian Federico Roman Euro, so Valery Volkov had to settle for an individual fourth place behind his compatriots Aleksandr Blinov and Yury Salnikov, while taking gold in the team event. Besides his Olympic gold, Valery Volkov was the Soviet champion in 1977. After finishing his sporting career in 1983, Volkov worked as an eventing coach in his native Yaroslavl.
Soviet Union
Russian Federation