Judo champ takes life over Olympics

A Russian judo official says a four-time European judo champion who committed suicide had been depressed since failing to win a medal at last year's London Olympics.

Authorities said Elena Ivashchenko died on Saturday at age 28 after jumping off the balcony of a 15th-floor apartment in the Siberian city of Tyumen.

The director of a Tyumen judo center, Vyacheslav Yurlov, told the Russian state news agency RIA Novosti that her depression had started after she was eliminated in the quarterfinals at the London Games.

Yurlov also said Ivashchenko needed several operations to treat a leg injury and had another one scheduled.

Ivashchenko won gold at the European Judo Championships in 2007, 2009, 2011 and 2012.