Bulgaria at the Olympics
Encyclopedia
Bulgaria
first participated at the Olympic Games
at the inaugural 1896 Games, with a single gymnast. However, since Charles Champaud
was a Swiss national living in Sofia
, some sources credit his appearance to Switzerland instead.
The Bulgarian Olympic Committee
was created in 1923 and first sent a team to the Summer Olympic Games
in 1924. The nation has participated in every Summer Games since then, except for 1932 (during the Great Depression
), 1948 (after World War II
), and 1984, when they participated in the Soviet-led boycott of the 1984 Summer Olympics
. Bulgaria first participated in the Winter Olympic Games
in 1936, and has attended every Winter Games since then.
Bulgarian athletes have won a total of 218 medals, with wrestling
and weightlifting as the top medal-producing sports.
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
first participated at 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...
at the inaugural 1896 Games, with a single gymnast. However, since Charles Champaud
Charles Champaud
Charles Champaud , Bulgarianized Charles Shampov , was a Swiss gymnast. He competed at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens.Champaud competed in the parallel bars, vault, and pommel horse events...
was a Swiss national living in 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...
, some sources credit his appearance to Switzerland instead.
The Bulgarian Olympic Committee
Bulgarian Olympic Committee
The Bulgarian Olympic Committee is a non-profit organization serving as the National Olympic Committee of Bulgaria and a part of the International Olympic Committee...
was created in 1923 and first sent a team to the Summer Olympic Games
Summer Olympic Games
The Summer Olympic Games or the Games of the Olympiad are an international multi-sport event, occurring every four years, organized by the International Olympic Committee. Medals are awarded in each event, with gold medals for first place, silver for second and bronze for third, a tradition that...
in 1924. The nation has participated in every Summer Games since then, except for 1932 (during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
), 1948 (after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
), and 1984, when they participated in the Soviet-led boycott of the 1984 Summer Olympics
1984 Summer Olympics boycott
The boycott of the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California. The boycott was a follow up to the American-led boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. The boycott involved 14 Eastern Bloc countries and allies, led by the Soviet Union who initiated the boycott on May 8, 1984, and joined...
. Bulgaria first participated in the Winter Olympic Games
Winter Olympic Games
The Winter Olympic Games is a sporting event, which occurs every four years. The first celebration of the Winter Olympics was held in Chamonix, France, in 1924. The original sports were alpine and cross-country skiing, figure skating, ice hockey, Nordic combined, ski jumping and speed skating...
in 1936, and has attended every Winter Games since then.
Bulgarian athletes have won a total of 218 medals, with wrestling
Wrestling
Wrestling is a form of grappling type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. A wrestling bout is a physical competition, between two competitors or sparring partners, who attempt to gain and maintain a superior position...
and weightlifting as the top medal-producing sports.
Medals by Summer Games
1896 Athens 1896 Summer Olympics The 1896 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the I Olympiad, was a multi-sport event celebrated in Athens, Greece, from April 6 to April 15, 1896. It was the first international Olympic Games held in the Modern era... |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1900 Paris 1900 Summer Olympics The 1900 Summer Olympics, today officially known as the Games of the II Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1900 in Paris, France. No opening or closing ceremonies were held; competitions began on May 14 and ended on October 28. The Games were held as part of... |
did not participate | |||
1904 St. Louis 1904 Summer Olympics The 1904 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the III Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in St. Louis, Missouri, in the United States from 1 July 1904, to November 23, 1904, at what is now known as Francis Field on the campus of Washington University... |
did not participate | |||
1908 London 1908 Summer Olympics The 1908 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the IV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in 1908 in London, England, United Kingdom. These games were originally scheduled to be held in Rome. At the time they were the fifth modern Olympic games... |
did not participate | |||
1912 Stockholm 1912 Summer Olympics The 1912 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Stockholm, Sweden, between 5 May and 27 July 1912. Twenty-eight nations and 2,407 competitors, including 48 women, competed in 102 events in 14 sports... |
did not participate | |||
1920 Antwerp 1920 Summer Olympics The 1920 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the VII Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event in 1920 in Antwerp, Belgium.... |
did not participate | |||
1924 Paris 1924 Summer Olympics The 1924 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the VIII Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1924 in Paris, France... |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1928 Amsterdam 1928 Summer Olympics The 1928 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the IX Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1928 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Amsterdam had bid for the 1920 and 1924 Olympic Games, but had to give way to war-victim Antwerp, Belgium, and Pierre de... |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1932 Los Angeles 1932 Summer Olympics The 1932 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the X Olympiad, was a major world wide multi-athletic event which was celebrated in 1932 in Los Angeles, California, United States. No other cities made a bid to host these Olympics. Held during the worldwide Great Depression, many nations... |
did not participate | |||
1936 Berlin 1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was held in 1936 in Berlin, Germany. Berlin won the bid to host the Games over Barcelona, Spain on April 26, 1931, at the 29th IOC Session in Barcelona... |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1948 London 1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XIV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in London, England, United Kingdom. After a 12-year hiatus because of World War II, these were the first Summer Olympics since the 1936 Games in Berlin... |
did not participate | |||
1952 Helsinki 1952 Summer Olympics The 1952 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Helsinki, Finland in 1952. Helsinki had been earlier given the 1940 Summer Olympics, which were cancelled due to World War II... |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
1956 Melbourne/Stockholm 1956 Summer Olympics The 1956 Melbourne Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in Melbourne, Australia, in 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events, which could not be held in Australia due to quarantine regulations... |
1 | 3 | 1 | 5 |
1960 Rome 1960 Summer Olympics The 1960 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held from August 25 to September 11, 1960 in Rome, Italy... |
1 | 3 | 3 | 7 |
1964 Tokyo 1964 Summer Olympics The 1964 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Tokyo, Japan in 1964. Tokyo had been awarded with the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this honor was subsequently passed to Helsinki because of Japan's... |
3 | 5 | 2 | 10 |
1968 Mexico City 1968 Summer Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Mexico City, Mexico in October 1968. The 1968 Games were the first Olympic Games hosted by a developing country, and the first Games hosted by a Spanish-speaking country... |
2 | 4 | 3 | 9 |
1972 Munich 1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from August 26 to September 11, 1972.... |
6 | 10 | 5 | 21 |
1976 Montreal 1976 Summer Olympics The 1976 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event celebrated in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in 1976. Montreal was awarded the rights to the 1976 Games on May 12, 1970, at the 69th IOC Session in Amsterdam, over the bids of Moscow and... |
6 | 9 | 7 | 22 |
1980 Moscow 1980 Summer Olympics The 1980 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event celebrated in Moscow in the Soviet Union. In addition, the yachting events were held in Tallinn, and some of the preliminary matches and the quarter-finals of the football tournament... |
8 | 16 | 17 | 41 |
1984 Los Angeles 1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Los Angeles, California, United States in 1984... |
did not participate | |||
1988 Seoul 1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad, were an all international multi-sport events celebrated from September 17 to October 2, 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. They were the second summer Olympic Games to be held in Asia and the first since the 1964 Summer Olympics... |
10 | 12 | 13 | 35 |
1992 Barcelona 1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event celebrated in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, in 1992. The International Olympic Committee voted in 1986 to separate the Summer and Winter Games, which had been held in the same... |
3 | 7 | 6 | 16 |
1996 Atlanta 1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics of Atlanta, officially known as the Games of the XXVI Olympiad and unofficially known as the Centennial Olympics, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1996 in Atlanta, Georgia, United States.... |
3 | 7 | 5 | 15 |
2000 Sydney 2000 Summer Olympics The Sydney 2000 Summer Olympic Games or the Millennium Games/Games of the New Millennium, officially known as the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated between 15 September and 1 October 2000 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia... |
5 | 6 | 2 | 13 |
2004 Athens 2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad, was a premier international multi-sport event held in Athens, Greece from August 13 to August 29, 2004 with the motto Welcome Home. 10,625 athletes competed, some 600 more than expected, accompanied by 5,501 team... |
2 | 1 | 9 | 12 |
2008 Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events... |
1 | 1 | 3 | 5 |
Total | 51 | 84 | 77 | 212 |
---|
Medals by Winter Games
1936 Garmisch-Partenkirchen 1936 Winter Olympics The 1936 Winter Olympics, officially known as the IV Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1936 in the market town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Bavaria, Germany. Germany also hosted the Summer Olympics the same year in Berlin... |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1948 St. Moritz 1948 Winter Olympics The 1948 Winter Olympics, officially known as the V Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated in 1948 in St. Moritz, Switzerland. The Games were the first to be celebrated after World War II; it had been twelve years since the last Winter Games in 1936... |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1952 Oslo 1952 Winter Olympics The 1952 Winter Olympics, officially known as the VI Olympic Winter Games, took place in Oslo, Norway, from 14 to 25 February 1952. Discussions about Oslo hosting the Winter Olympic Games began as early as 1935; the city wanted to host the 1948 Games, but World War II made that impossible... |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1956 Cortina d'Ampezzo 1956 Winter Olympics The 1956 Winter Olympics, officially known as the VII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy. This celebration of the Games was held from 26 January to 5 February 1956. Cortina, which had originally been awarded the 1944 Winter Olympics, beat out... |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1960 Squaw Valley 1960 Winter Olympics The 1960 Winter Olympics, officially known as the VIII Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event held between February 18 and 28, 1960 in Squaw Valley, California, United States. In 1955 at the 50th IOC meeting, the organizing committee made the surprise choice to award Squaw Valley as... |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1964 Innsbruck 1964 Winter Olympics The 1964 Winter Olympics, officially known as the IX Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in Innsbruck, Austria, from January 29 to February 9, 1964... |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1968 Grenoble 1968 Winter Olympics The 1968 Winter Olympics, officially known as the X Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1968 in Grenoble, France and opened on 6 February. Thirty-seven countries participated... |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1972 Sapporo 1972 Winter Olympics The 1972 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XI Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated from February 3 to February 13, 1972 in Sapporo, Hokkaidō, Japan... |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1976 Innsbruck 1976 Winter Olympics The 1976 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XII Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated February 4–15, 1976 in Innsbruck, Austria... |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1980 Lake Placid 1980 Winter Olympics The 1980 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XIII Olympic Winter Games, was a multi-sport event which was celebrated from 13 February through 24 February 1980 in Lake Placid, New York, United States of America. This was the second time the Upstate New York village hosted the Games, after 1932... |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
1984 Sarajevo 1984 Winter Olympics The 1984 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XIV Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated from 8–19 February 1984 in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia. Other candidate cities were Sapporo, Japan; and Gothenburg, Sweden... |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1988 Calgary 1988 Winter Olympics The 1988 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XV Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event celebrated in and around Calgary, Alberta, Canada from 13 to 28 February 1988. The host was selected in 1981 after having beat Falun, Sweden and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy... |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1992 Albertville 1992 Winter Olympics The 1992 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XVI Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 8 to 23 February 1992 in Albertville, France. They were the last Winter Olympics to be held the same year as the Summer Olympics, and the first where the Winter Paralympics... |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1994 Lillehammer 1994 Winter Olympics The 1994 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XVII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 12 to 27 February 1994 in and around Lillehammer, Norway. Lillehammer failed to win the bid for the 1992 event. Lillehammer was awarded the games in 1988, after having beat... |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1998 Nagano 1998 Winter Olympics The 1998 Winter Olympics, officially the XVIII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 7 to 22 February 1998 in Nagano, Japan. Seventy-two nations and 2,176 participans contested in seven sports and 72 events at 15 venues. The games saw the introduction of Women's ice... |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
2002 Salt Lake City 2002 Winter Olympics The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event that was celebrated in February 2002 in and around Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. Approximately 2,400 athletes from 77 nations participated in 78 events in fifteen disciplines, held throughout... |
0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
2006 Turin 2006 Winter Olympics The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XX Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in Turin, Italy from February 10, 2006, through February 26, 2006. This marked the second time Italy hosted the Olympic Winter Games, the first being the VII Olympic Winter... |
0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
2010 Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics The 2010 Winter Olympics, officially the XXI Olympic Winter Games or the 21st Winter Olympics, were a major international multi-sport event held from February 12–28, 2010, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with some events held in the suburbs of Richmond, West Vancouver and the University... |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
---|
Medals by sport
Wrestling Wrestling at the Summer Olympics Wrestling has been contested at the Summer Olympic Games since the sport was introduced in the ancient Olympic Games in 708 BC. When the modern Olympic Games resumed in Athens in 1896, wrestling became a focus of the Games, with the exception of the 1900 Summer Olympics when wrestling did not... |
16 | 31 | 20 | 67 |
Weightlifting Weightlifting at the Summer Olympics Weightlifting has been contested at every Summer Olympic Games since the 1920 Summer Olympics, as well as twice before then. It debuted at the 1896 Summer Olympics, in Athens, Greece, and was also an event at the 1904 Games.-Men's events:... |
12 | 16 | 8 | 36 |
Athletics Athletics at the Summer Olympics Athletics has been contested at every Summer Olympics since the birth of the modern Olympic movement at the 1896 Summer Olympics. The athletics program traces its earliest roots to events used in the ancient Greek Olympics. The modern program now comprises track and field events, road running... |
5 | 7 | 6 | 18 |
Shooting Shooting at the Summer Olympics Shooting sports have been contested at every Summer Olympic Games since the birth of the modern Olympic movement at the 1896 Summer Olympics except at the 1904 & 1928 editions.-Men's:... |
4 | 6 | 6 | 16 |
Boxing Boxing at the Summer Olympics Boxing has been contested at every Summer Olympic Games since its introduction to the program at the 1904 Summer Olympics, except for the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm, because Swedish law banned the sport at the time. The 2008 Summer Olympics was the final games with boxing as a male only event... |
4 | 5 | 8 | 17 |
Canoeing Canoeing at the Summer Olympics Canoeing and kayaking has been featured as a competition sport in the Summer Olympic Games since the 1936 Games in Berlin although it was a demonstration sport at the 1924 Games in Paris. There are two disciplines of canoeing in Olympic competition: slalom and sprint.Two styles of boats are... |
4 | 5 | 8 | 17 |
Rowing Rowing at the Summer Olympics Rowing at the Summer Olympics has been part of the competition since the 1900 Summer Olympics. Rowing was on the program at the 1896 Summer Olympics but was cancelled due to bad weather. Only men were allowed to compete until the women's events were introduced at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal... |
3 | 4 | 7 | 14 |
Gymnastics Gymnastics at the Summer Olympics Gymnastics events have been contested at every Summer Olympic Games since the birth of the modern Olympic movement at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens. For 32 years, only men were allowed to compete. Beginning at the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam, women were allowed to compete in artistic... |
2 | 4 | 7 | 13 |
Swimming Swimming at the Summer Olympics Swimming has been a sport at every modern Summer Olympics. It has been open to women since 1912. Along with track & field athletics and gymnastics it is one of the most popular spectator sports at the Games and the one with the largest number of events.... |
1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
Biathlon Biathlon at the Winter Olympics Biathlon debuted at the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley with the men's 20 km individual event. At the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, the men's 4×7.5 km relay debuted, followed by the 10 km sprint event at the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York... |
1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
Judo Judo at the Summer Olympics Judo was first included in the Summer Olympic Games at the 1964 Games in Tokyo, Japan. After not being included in 1968, judo has been an Olympic sport in each Olympiad since then. Only male judoka participated until the 1988 Summer Olympics, when women participated as a demonstration sport... |
0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
Short track speed skating Short track speed skating at the Winter Olympics Short track speed skating has been a contest at the Winter Olympics since the 1992 Winter Games in Albertville, France. Prior to that, it was a demonstration sport at the 1988 games. The results from the 1988 demonstration competition is not included in the official Olympic statistics... |
0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
Basketball Basketball at the Summer Olympics Basketball has been a Summer Olympics sport for men consistently since 1936. Prior to its inclusion as a medal sport, it was held as demonstration event in 1904 and 1932, both in the United States. Women's basketball was played in the Olympics only since 1976.... |
0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Football Football at the Summer Olympics Association football, usually known simply as football or soccer, has been included in every Olympiad except 1896 and 1932 as a men's competition sport. Women's football was added to the official programme in 1996.-Early history:... |
0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Volleyball Volleyball at the Summer Olympics Volleyball has been contested as an indoor sport at the Summer Olympic Games since 1964. Beach volleyball was introduced at the 1992 Games, and has been an official Olympic sport since 1996.-Origins:... |
0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Equestrian Equestrian at the Summer Olympics Equestrianism made its Summer Olympics debut at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris, France. It disappeared until 1912, but has appeared at every Summer Olympic Games since. The current Olympic equestrian disciplines are Dressage, Eventing, and Jumping... |
0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing at the Winter Olympics Cross-country skiing has been contested at the Winter Olympic Games since the first Winter Games in 1924. The women's events were first contested at the 1952 Winter Olympics.- Events :- Medal table :- Number of Cross-country skiers by Nation :... |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Tennis Tennis at the Summer Olympics Tennis was part of the Summer Olympic Games program from the inaugural 1896 Summer Olympics, but was dropped after the 1924 Summer Olympics... |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Total | 52 | 86 | 80 | 218 |
---|