Tamara Belenkova

Tamara Anatoliivna Belenkova née Kuka (, 17 July 1958– 29 March 2017) was a Soviet and Ukrainian deaf volleyballist.

Early life Tamara Belenkova was born on July 17, 1958 in Mozoliivka in a working family. Due to the disease, she became deaf when she was only 1 year old.

In 1965, she entered the first grade of the Myrhorod special school for hearing-impaired children. In 1973, Tamara graduated from the 8th grade of Myrhorod special school and her parents transferred her to the Kyiv special school No. 18, where she studied until 1976.

In 1982–1989 Belenkova competed at the European Deaf Volleyball Championships, winning two gold medals overall. The following year, at the 1994 European Deaf Volleyball Championships, Belenkova became a European champion with Ukrainian national team.

In 1997, at the Summer Deaflympics in Copenhagen, Belenkova won a silver medal in women's deaf volleyball. In 1999, at the European Deaf Volleyball Championships in Moscow, Belenkova became a European champion with Ukrainian national team.

In 2005, Belenkova competed at the Summer Deaflympics in Melbourne, winning a gold medal.

In 2008, Belenkova competed at the World Deaf Volleyball Championships, winning a gold medal and becoming a world champion.

The following year, Belenkova competed at the 2009 Summer Deaflympics, where she won a gold medal.

On March 29, 2017, Tamara Belenkova died in Kyiv.