section_path: Early life
section_name: Early life
paragraph_text: Early life
  
  Ovechkin was born on 17 September 1985 in Moscow, the son of Soviet athletes. His mother, Tatyana Ovechkina, is a two-time Olympic gold medalist (1976, 1980) and world champion (1975) in basketball. His father, Mikhail, was a soccer player. His mother sensed her youngest son was destined for "sporting greatness". "From birth, it was obvious," she said. "In a child, it's clear immediately. He was very active and walking and curious." His favorite NHL team growing up was the San Jose Sharks and also was the first NHL jersey he received. He was two years old when he first picked up a hockey stick. Whenever a hockey game came on television, he would drop whatever he was doing, refusing to allow his parents to change the channel.
  
  In early childhood, he moved with his family to a tall high-rise building surrounded by a "crumbling neighborhood" on the outskirts of Moscow. There he attended public school #596, infamous for military discipline and a "tyrannical" principal, completing eight and a half grades before starting at Dynamo Moscow 's sports school. While he saw his friends "getting high and getting dead," Ovechkin was attending daily training sessions morning and night. "You dive into sport with your head and arms and legs, and there's no time for anything else," he said of this early training.
  
  Whenever his parents were no longer able to get young Alex to hockey events, his elder brother Sergei stepped up, making sure his little brother got where he needed to go. When Ovechkin was 10, Sergei died of a blood clot following a car accident. Ovechkin had a youth hockey game the next day, which his parents insisted he play in. Ovechkin credits his elder brother Sergei for introducing him to, and encouraging him to pursue hockey. When he scores, Ovechkin will often kiss his glove and point to the sky in a salute to his brother.
  
  Ovechkin established his reputation within the Dynamo Moscow system by scoring 56 goals at the age of 11, surpassing the previous record held by Pavel Bure, who had scored 53 goals. Meanwhile, Ovechkin dreamed of playing in the NHL, keeping the cards of star players stashed in his room, especially those of his idol, Mario Lemieux. "It's the best hockey there is," Ovechkin would say of the NHL.
  
  Ovechkin was born on 17 September 1985 in Moscow, the son of Soviet athletes. His mother, Tatyana Ovechkina, is a two-time Olympic gold medalist (1976, 1980) and world champion (1975) in basketball. His father, Mikhail, was a soccer player. His mother sensed her youngest son was destined for "sporting greatness". "From birth, it was obvious," she said. "In a child, it's clear immediately. He was very active and walking and curious." His favorite NHL team growing up was the San Jose Sharks and also was the first NHL jersey he received. He was two years old when he first picked up a hockey stick. Whenever a hockey game came on television, he would drop whatever he was doing, refusing to allow his parents to change the channel.
  
  In early childhood, he moved with his family to a tall high-rise building surrounded by a "crumbling neighborhood" on the outskirts of Moscow. There he attended public school #596, infamous for military discipline and a "tyrannical" principal, completing eight and a half grades before starting at Dynamo Moscow 's sports school. While he saw his friends "getting high and getting dead," Ovechkin was attending daily training sessions morning and night. "You dive into sport with your head and arms and legs, and there's no time for anything else," he said of this early training.
  
  Whenever his parents were no longer able to get young Alex to hockey events, his elder brother Sergei stepped up, making sure his little brother got where he needed to go. When Ovechkin was 10, Sergei died of a blood clot following a car accident. Ovechkin had a youth hockey game the next day, which his parents insisted he play in. Ovechkin credits his elder brother Sergei for introducing him to, and encouraging him to pursue hockey. When he scores, Ovechkin will often kiss his glove and point to the sky in a salute to his brother.
  
  Ovechkin established his reputation within the Dynamo Moscow system by scoring 56 goals at the age of 11, surpassing the previous record held by Pavel Bure, who had scored 53 goals. Meanwhile, Ovechkin dreamed of playing in the NHL, keeping the cards of star players stashed in his room, especially those of his idol, Mario Lemieux. "It's the best hockey there is," Ovechkin would say of the NHL.