Sergey, Prince Beloselsky-Belozersky

Sergey, Prince Beloselsky-Belozersky was commissioned into the cavalry and later served as aide-de-camp to Grand Duke Vladimir Aleksandrovich. He served in World War I and in 1916 commanded the Caucasian Cavalry Division on the Persian Front. He was a top horseman, founded the first Russian polo club in St. Petersburg, and led Russian Officers at the Olympia Horse Show in London in 1911. After the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917, Prince Beloselsky-Belozersky stayed in Finland with Field Marshall Mannerheim, then was in Sweden for two years, before settling in England. He was active in the anti-Bolshevik Movement in England but his interest waned after he moved to Tonbridge in 1921, 70 km south of London. The Prince married Susan Whittier, from a prominent Boston family, who was the sister of Polly Whittier, second-place finisher at the 1900 women’s Olympic golf event.

Prince Beloselsky-Belozersky was co-opted onto the IOC in November 1900 and served until April 1908, but never attended an IOC Session. He lived in England until 1951, but his last years were spent in difficult financial circumstances, living in a small flat above a grocery shop. His funeral was attended by a large number of exiled Russian nobles.