During the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France, Tarasov became acutely ill and had to be taken to the hospital.

Rumours about the cause of his grave medical condition soon started floating around the Olympic village, and was also reported in the press,[1] but the Russian team leaders said he'd suffered kidney failure from eating poisonous mushrooms.

Many years later, in 2015, Tarasov gave an interview where he confirmed what many had thought in 1992, his kidney failure was caused by a botched blood transfusion.

The blood transfusion at the Olympics was done by the team to illegally enhance his performance in the upcoming competitions, but nearly cost him his life.

[2] All results are sourced from the International Biathlon Union.