Valery Ilyin has died at the age of 72 ©UIPM

Russian modern pentathlon coach Valery Ilyin has died at the age of 72 due to COVID-19.

Ilyin died on April 28, said the International Modern Pentathlon Union.

As an athlete, Ilyin was a fencer and transitioned into coaching, later making the move from fencing to modern pentathlon.

He trained pentathletes at the Central Army Club in Moscow, with two of his most prolific athletes being Svetlana Yakovleva and Tatiana Chernetskaya.

Yakovleva won a world championship in 1984, while Chernetskaya won a gold medal at the 1986 Goodwill Games.

Valery Ilyin was previously a fencer before coaching modern pentathlon ©Getty Images
Valery Ilyin was previously a fencer before coaching modern pentathlon ©Getty Images

Fencing is one of the five events in modern pentathlon, alongside freestyle swimming, showjumping and laser-run - a combination of cross country running and pistol shooting.

A spokesperson for the Russian Modern Pentathlon Federation said Ilyin "was a very kind and friendly person loved by the modern pentathlon family in Russia and the Central Army Club, where he worked and trained pentathletes all his life."

There have been more than 405,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Russia and at least 4,600 deaths.