Antonio Krastev (born 1961) is a former Bulgarian super heavyweight weightlifter who is best known for lifting the heaviest snatch

Snatch (weightlifting)

The snatch is one of the two olympic weightlifting events .The essence of the event is to lift a barbell from the platform to locked arms overhead in a smooth continuous movement. The barbell is pulled as high as the lifter can manage at which point the barbell is flipped overhead...

 ever in IWF competition at 216 kg, although this record is no longer official due to the restructuring of the weight classes. Antonio is a two-time World Weightlifting Championships

World Weightlifting Championships

World Weightlifting Championships is an event organised by International Weightlifting Federation .It has been held since 1891. In March 1891, competing against champions from Brussels, Hamburg, England, Vienna, Italy, and Berlin in a three-day event, Edward Lawrence Levy of England won the first...

 gold medalist and two time European Weightlifting Championships

European Weightlifting Championships

European Weightlifting Championships is an annual event organised by the European Weightlifting Federation . It has been held since 1896. A separate event for women was held from 1988 to 1997, after which both championships have been held as one event....

 gold medalist, but never competed in the Olympic Games

Olympic Games

The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...

.

Krastev was originally intended to represent Bulgaria at the 1988 Olympic Games

Weightlifting at the 1988 Summer Olympics

The weightlifting competition at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul consisted of ten weight classes, all for men only.-Medal summary:Mitko Grabnev and Angel Guenchev of Bulgaria were originally won their respective weight classes, but were both disqualified after they tested positive for Furosemide...

 in the superheavyweight category. 2 of his teammates who had won gold medals in their weight classes tested positive for banned substances, and the Buglarian weightlifting federation pulled the rest of the team out of the competition the day before Krastev was scheduled to compete. Mitko Grablev (56 kg) & Angel Guenchev (67.5 kg) were both disqualified after they tested positive for Furosemide

Furosemide

Furosemide or frusemide is a loop diuretic used in the treatment of congestive heart failure and edema. It is most commonly marketed by Sanofi-Aventis under the brand name Lasix...

. At the time, Krastev was a 2-time World champion and 2 time European champion, and a heavy favorite for the gold medal.

World records

• 11/15/1986 Snatch - 212.5kg Super Heavyweight Sofia
  Sofia
  Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...
  
  
• 11/15/1986 Snatch - 215kg Super Heavyweight Sofia
• 5/9/1987 Snatch - 215.5kg Super Heavyweight Reims
  Reims
  Reims , a city in the Champagne-Ardenne region of France, lies east-northeast of Paris. Founded by the Gauls, it became a major city during the period of the Roman Empire....
  
  
• 5/9/1987 Total - 467.5kg Super Heavyweight Reims
• 9/13/1987 Snatch - 216kg Super Heavyweight Ostrau
  Ostrau
  Ostrau may refer to the following places:* Ostrau, Saxony, a municipality in the district of Döbeln, Saxony, Germany* Ostrau, Saxony-Anhalt, a municipality in the Saalekreis district, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany* the German name for Ostrava, Czech Republic...