Christo Plaschkow

Christo Plaschkow (born August 9, 1953 in Chepelare / Bulgaria ; † 2009 ) is a former Bulgarian weightlifter . He was world champion in 1975 in the snatch of the super heavyweight .

Career

Christo Platschkowo started lifting weights as a teenager in 1969. After his first successes in the junior sector , he was delegated to the sports club Asenobes Asenovgrad . At a height of 1.87 meters, he grew into the super heavyweight (weight class over 110 kg body weight) as a junior. In 1973 he was accepted into the Bulgarian national weightlifting team and formally into the Bulgarian army. The head coach of the national team at that time was Ivan Abajiev .

1973 Platschkow played his first international competition, the Danube Cup tournament in Constanța . He finished there in the super heavyweight with 335 kg (14-190) in a duel in 1st place ahead of Wolfgang Neyses from the Federal Republic of Germany , 302.5 kg. On July 27, 1973 he achieved a new junior world record in snatching in Pernik with 162.5 kg. It turned out that his physical prerequisites for the snatch were excellent, as he was quite tall for a weightlifter at 1.87 meters, but had excellent leverage.

In 1974 he increased to 390 kg (180-210) in a duel at the Pannonia tournament in Budapest . He was then used by the Bulgarian Association at the World Cup in Manila . There he won the silver medal in the snatch with 180 kg behind Vasily Alexejew from the Soviet Union , who snatched 185 kg. In the push he only succeeded in one attempt with 195 kg, so that he did not achieve his duel result from the Pannonia tournament and came in 5th place with 375 kg.

In 1975 Christo Plaschkow continued to improve. He was Bulgarian champion in Yambol with the new personal best of 422.5 kg (192.5-230). He achieved two new world records for seniors in the snatch with 190 kg and 192.5 kg. At the World and European Championships this year in Moscow he achieved 420 kg (195-225) in a duel and thus took 3rd place behind Vasily Alexejew , 427.5 kg (187.5-240) and Gerd Bonk from the GDR , 422.5 (180-242.5). But he had the satisfaction with his tear performance of 195 kg, the new world record meant to beat Vasily Alexejew and to become world and European champion in this discipline. A little later he improved the world record in snatching in Sevljowo to 197.5 kg. Towards the end of 1975 he increased himself to 432.5 kg (197.5-235) at a tournament in Sofia , setting a new world record for duels. He also led the annual world best list for 1975, ahead of Vasily Alexejew, 430 kg (185–245). At this event he achieved a new world record in snatch with 198 kg.

At the European Championships in 1976 in Berlin (East), he led the super heavyweight with 430 kg (195-235) in a duel on the starting field, in which Vasily Alexejew was missing, and looked like the sure new European champion, until Gerd Bonk , the had only achieved 180 kg in the snatch, but with a new world record in jerking of 252.5 he still took victory with 432.5 kg in a duel and relegated Christo Plaschkow to 2nd place. Shortly before the Bulgarian team left for the Olympic Games in Montreal , another competition was held in Sofia , in which Christo Plaschkow set two new world records. At first he managed 200 kg in the snatch, making him the first weightlifter ever to achieve this performance in the snatch, which Vasily Alexejew never managed. Then Christo Plaschkow achieved a new world record with 442.5 kg in a duel. Particularly noteworthy was the increase in his performance in pushing to 242.5 kg, because the pushing had previously been his weak point compared to Alexejew and Bonk.

At the Olympic Games in Montreal, surprisingly for everyone, Christo Plaschkow did not start. The Bulgarian team's official justification was that he was injured. However, it is reasonable to assume that he was tested positive in the final doping test by the Bulgarian association doctors shortly before the competition in Montreal. As the Olympic weightlifting tournament in Montreal showed, the Bulgarian team took a very risky path, because four Bulgarian weightlifters were convicted of doping at this tournament. One of them was Valentin Christow , who won the gold medal in the heavyweight division, and another Blagoj Blagojew , who won the silver medal in the light heavyweight division. The Bulgarian team management under the responsible coach Ivan Abadschiev apparently believed that they could take the risk of a start with these four doped weightlifters, which turned out to be a mistake, while with Plashkow this risk was obviously assessed as too great and he did not even start let.

After this debacle, Christo Plaschkow never achieved anywhere near as good a performance as before Montreal in 1976. He was only active until 1979, although in 1979 he was only 26 years old. The highlights of the years 1977 to 1979 were a 4th place at the World and European Championships in Stuttgart with 400 kg (180–220) in a duel and a 4th place at the 1978 World Cup in Gettysburg with 407.5 kg (187.5 kg) -220). His last victory was winning the Bulgarian championship in 1979 with 407.5 kg (192.5-215).

International success

(WM = World Championship, EM = European Championship, SS = super heavyweight, at that time over 110 kg body weight)

• 1973, 1st place , Danube Cup tournament (juniors) in Constanța , SS, 335 kg (145–190), ahead of Wolfgang Neyses , FRG , 302.5 kg;
• 1974, 4th place , Tournament of Friendship in Yerevan , SS, 370 kg (170–200), behind Vasily Alexejew , USSR , 395 kg (170–225), Gerd Bonk , GDR , 385 kg (162.5–222, 5) u. Serge Reding , Belgium , 382.5 kg (150-222.5);
• 1974, 1st place , Pannonia tournament in Budapest , SS, 390 kg (180–210), ahead of Chudik, Hungary , 330 kg a. Kerr, United Kingdom , 317.5 kg;
• 1974, 5th place , World Championship in Manila , SS, 375 kg (180–195), behind Vasily Alexejew, 425 kg (185–240), Serge Reding, 390 kg (170–220), Jürgen Heuser , GDR, 382, 5 kg u. Petr Pavlásek , CSSR , 382.5 kg;
• 1974, 2nd place , Balkan Games in Burgas , SS, 377.5 kg (175–202.5), behind Tramburadschiew, Bulgaria , 380 kg a. off Deac, Romania , 310 kg;
• 1975, 1st place , Danube Cup tournament in Donaueschingen , SS, 395 kg (175–220), ahead of Petr Pavlasek, 392.5 kg a. Hanzlik, Hungary, 340 kg;
• 1975, 1st place , Balkan Championship in Sombor , SS, 400 kg, ahead of Krejcik, Romania, 302.5 kg;
• 1975, 3rd place , WM + EM in Moscow , SS, 420 kg (195–225), behind Vasily Alexejew, 427.5 kg (187.5–240) and Gerd Bonk, 422.5 kg (180-242.5);
• 1975, 1st place , tournament of the "strongest lifters in the world" in London , SS, with 412.5 kg in front of Aslanbek Jenaldijew , USSR, 400 kg;
• 1975, 1st place , tournament in Sofia , SS, 432.5 kg (197.5-235);
• 1976, 2nd place , EM in Berlin (East), SS, 430 kg (195-235), behind Gerd Bonk, 432.5 kg (180-252.5) ​​and before Jürgen Heuser, GDR, 410 kg (180–230);
• 1976, 1st place , tournament in Sofia, SS, 442.5 kg (200–242.5);
• 1977, 2nd place , Pannonia tournament in Budapest, SS, 392.5 kg (182.5–210), behind Aslanbek Jenaldiew, 432.5 kg (190–242.5);
• 1977, 4th place , WM + EM in Stuttgart , SS, 400 kg (180–220), behind Vasily Alexejew, 430 kg (185–245), Aslanbek Jenaldijew, 422.5 kg (182.5–240) and Jürgen Heuser, 420 kg (182.5-237.5);
• 1978, 4th place , World Cup in Gettysburg , SS, 407.5 kg (187.5–220), behind Jürgen Heuser, 417.5 kg (185–232.5), Sultan Rachmanow , USSR, 417.5 kg ( 187.5-230) and Gerd Bonk, 410 kg (175-235).

WM u. EM individual medals

• World Cup gold medal: 1975 / tear;
• World Cup silver medals: 1974 / tearing, 1978 / tearing;
• EM gold medals: 1975 / tearing, 1976 / tearing;
• EM silver medal: 1976 / pushing.

Bulgarian championships

(as far as known)

• 1975, 1st place, SS, with 422.5 kg (192.5–230), in front of Tramburadschiew, 397.5 kg,
• 1977, 1st place, SS, with 385 kg in front of S. Andonow, 357.5 kg,
• 1979, 1st place, SS, with 407.5 kg (192.5–215), before I. Gartschew, 390 kg.

World records

• 1975 in Jambol, SS, 190 kg in the snatch,
• 1975 in Jambol, SS, 192.5 kg in snatch,
• 1975 in Moscow, SS, 195 kg in the snatch,
• 1975 in Sevljowo, SS, 197.5 kg in snatch,
• 1975 in Sofia, SS, 198 kg in the snatch,
• 1975 in Sofia, SS, 432.5 kg in a duel,
• 1976 in Sofia, SS, 200 kg in snatch,
• 1976 in Sofia, SS, 442.5 kg.

swell

• Professional journal Athletics, numbers: 7/1973, 4/1974, 7/1974, 9/1974, 4/1975, 6/1975, 10/1975, 8/1976, 9/1977, 10/11/1977, 3/1978 , 11/1978, 12/1979, 4/1980,
• Website "www.sport-komplett.de",
• Website "www.chidlovski.net"

Web link

• Christo Plaschkow in Top Olympic Lifters of the 20th Century