Velik Kapsazov
| Velik Kapsazov | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Велик Николов Капсъзов | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Full name | Velik Nikolov Kapsazov | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 15 April 1935 Asenovgrad, Bulgaria | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 27 March 2017 (aged 81)[1] Sofia, Bulgaria | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.67 m (5 ft 6 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Gymnastics career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Discipline | Men's artistic gymnastics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country represented | Bulgaria | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Velik Nikolov Kapsazov (Bulgarian: Велик Николов Капсъзов; 15 April 1935 – 27 March 2017) was a Bulgarian gymnast. He competed at the 1956, 1960 and 1964 Summer Olympics in all artistic gymnastics events, and shared a bronze medal in the rings in 1960 with Takashi Ono.[2] This was the first Olympic medal for Bulgaria in gymnastics.[3]
Biography
Kapsazov was born in Asenovgrad on 15 April 1935. He initially trained in weightlifting before he turned to artistic gymnastics. He joined the national team in 1954.[4]
At the 1959 European Championships, he won the bronze medal on rings. He later won both the 1961 and 1963 European Championships.[5]
In 1961, he competed at the 1961 Summer Universiade, held in his home country of Bulgaria. There he won three medals, bronze in the all-around and gold in the rings and parallel bars finals.[5]
During his career, he competed at three Olympic games from 1954 to 1964. At the 1960 Summer Olympics, he became the first Bulgarian to win an Olympic medal in any sport when he tied Takashi Ono for bronze on the rings.[2] He was not expected to reach the final, and so his coach had been sent back to save money; another coach had to step in to lift Kapsazov onto the rings to begin his routine. Kapsazov had the necklace of his medal engraved with the names of his teammates in the order that they competed in the all-around.[6]
Kapsazov retired following the 1964 Olympic Games and became a coach.[5] His students included Yordan Yovchev, a six-time Olympian.[2] He died 27 March 2017, aged 81.[4]
References
- ^ "Първият българин с олимпийски медалв спортната гимнастикапочина днес" (in Bulgarian). BTA. 27 March 2017. Retrieved 1 April 2017.
- ^ a b c "Velik Kapsazov Bio, Stats, and Results | Olympics at Sports-Reference.com". sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020.
- ^ "Rome 1960". Bulgarian Olympic Committee. Archived from the original on 20 June 2012.
- ^ a b Hristova, Nadezhda (27 March 2017). "Почина първият ни олимпийски медалист в гимнастиката" [Our First Olympic Medalist in Gymnastics Dies]. Dnes (in Bulgarian). Retrieved 1 April 2017.
- ^ a b c "Отиде си Велик Капсъзов – първият ни олимпийски медалист по спортна гимнастика" [Velik Kapsazov – our first Olympic medalist in artistic gymnastics has passed away]. 24 Chasa. 27 March 2017. Retrieved 1 April 2017.
- ^ Michev, Asen (9 July 2005). "Скъсаната огърлица на един медал от Рим'60" [The broken necklace of a medal from Rome'60]. old.duma.bg (in Bulgarian). Retrieved 30 April 2025.