Chicherova was born in
Yerevan and then moved to
Belaya Kalitva, Russia, when the Soviet Union dissolved. She previously announced that she would retire after the 2013 World Championships in Moscow, after 14 years at the top, but has since continued to jump. After her second world silver in 2009, Chicherova announced her retirement, but after giving birth in 2010, she made her come back in 2011. In 1999, she won her first major title when she was only 16, at the world youth championships in
Bydgoszcz. Chicherova was among the world leading high jumpers for several years until she missed the 2010 season due to pregnancy. After returning in 2011 she established herself as the world leading female high jumper displacing
Blanka Vlašić. Her personal best jump and the
Russian national record is 2.07 metres, achieved on her 29th birthday at the Russian
track and field championships of 2011. Her best indoors was achieved at the
Hochsprung mit Musik meeting 2012 in
Arnstadt with 2.06 m. She thereby improved her
Russian indoor national record by two centimeters. Chicherova is among the top ten high jumpers of all time both indoor and outdoor. Chicherova is currently in the athletics club based in
Moscow, where she is coached by
Yevgeni Zagorulko. She is married to
Gennadiy Chernovol. She was absent for the 2010 season due to pregnancy and had her first child, Nika, in September that year. With her victories in
Daegu and
London, Chicherova became only the third female high jumper in history (after
Stefka Kostadinova &
Heike Henkel) to win gold at both the Olympic Games and the World Championships. ==Achievements==