Vasiliy Bykov was born on June 19, 1924 in Bychki, Byelorussian SSR, USSR [now Vitebsk Oblast, Belarus]. He was a writer, known for Alpenballade (1966), Aufstieg (1977) and Alpiyskaya ballada. He was married to Irina Suvorov and Nadia. He died on June 23, 2003 in Minsk, Belarus.