Honored coach of Kazakhstan passes away

KOKSHETAU. KAZINFORM - Honored coach of the Kazakh SSR and the Republic of Kazakhstan and master of sports in cross-country skiing Yevgeniy Zhirov has passed away at the age of 79 today.

Zhirov dedicated over 50 years of his life to coaching and trained several generations of Kazakhstani skiers. He began his coaching career back in 1961 right after graduating the Kazakh Physical Culture and Sports Institute.

The Committee for Sports Affairs and Physical Culture said in a statement that Zhirov retired last September.