Blagoy Blagoev (Bulgarian: Благой Благоев; born 4 December 1956) is a retired Bulgarianweightlifter. Between 1976 and 1984 he claimed seven gold and five silver medals at the Summer Olympics and World and European championships.[1] He set 18 world records. 13 of them were in the snatch. His last snatch world record was 195.5 kg in the 90 kg weight class, set on 1 May 1983 in Varna and remains the heaviest weight ever snatched by a middle heavyweight. Blagoev was twice declared the Best Weightlifter in the World by the International Weightlifting Federation - in 1982 and 1983. Blagoev was named Sportsperson of the Year in Bulgaria for 1982.
Blagoev was a two time Olympian. He represented his native country Bulgaria at the Summer Olympics in Montreal (1976) and in Moscow (1980). He won a silver Olympic medal in the light heavyweight 1980 after being stripped of the silver medal in the -82.5 kg competition in 1976 Summer Olympics due to a positive steroid test. Blagoy Blagoev competed in the 82.5 kg and 90 kg weight classes. He was a 3x World Champion (1981, 1982, 1983) in the middle heavyweight. He won 4 gold European medals – as a light heavyweight in 1979 and as a middle heavyweight in 1981-1983.
Blagoev also won three consecutive World Cups in Varna, Bulgaria in 1982-1984 and 5 Bulgarian Championships (1979, 1981-1984).[2] He later coached the Australian Paralympic Powerlifting Team in the 1990s to early 2000s.[3]
