Vitaly Scherbo is a Belarusian (and former Soviet) gymnast and is one of the most successful male gymnasts of all time. His tally of six gold medals in a single Olympics is surpassed only by swimmer Mark Spitz. Scherbo was introduced to gymnastics at the age of seven by his mother in an attempt to channel the energy of her highly intelligent but uncontrollable young son. Scherbo's first international performances were in 1990-1991, when he competed for the USSR team at the World Championship and the World Cup. He was the 1991 World All-Around silver medalist behind teammate Grigori Misutin; scored a perfect 10.0 on the vault at the European Championships in 1990; and starred at the Goodwill Games in Seattle. In one of the most dominant performances in history, Scherbo won six out of the possible eight awarded gold medals at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain.

His golds came in the team event, the all around, pommel horse (tie), rings, vault, and parallel bars. Scherbo's cocky personality and uncanny ability to come up with perfect performances when it mattered the most made him an instant hit with worldwide audiences. He traveled with and performed in a highly successful post-Olympic tour, featuring Shannon Miller, among others, where his popularity with American audiences dramatically increased. After relocating to the United States, the charismatic media darling secured multiple endorsement deals, sponsorships, and gala appearances, becoming the first former Soviet athlete to successfully market himself in the U.S. He followed up on his Olympic triumph by winning the 1993 World All-Around title, and the 1993 and 1994 American Cup, as well as numerous individual apparatus medals on the way.

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