Yanko Bratanov

Yanko Bratanov
Personal information
Born (1952-06-10) June 10, 1952
Sliven, Bulgaria
Height 182 cm (6 ft 0 in)
Weight 70 kg (154 lb)
Sport
Country Bulgaria
Event(s) 400 m hurdles
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s) 400 m hurdles: 49.77 (1976)
Medal record
European Indoor Championships
1976 Munich400 m
1975 Katowice4 × 2 laps
Updated on 21 July 2015.

Yanko Ivanov Bratanov (Bulgarian: Янко Иванов Братанов; born 10 June 1952) is a Bulgarian former track and field athlete. He won gold in the 400 metres at the 1976 European Indoor Championships and was an Olympic finalist in the 400 m hurdles in 1976 and 1980. After his athletic career he has worked as a coach in Qatar and Bahrain.

Biography

Athletic career

Bratanov was born in Sliven on 10 June 1952.[1] He took up athletics early, initially competing in the 110 m hurdles but switching to the 400 m hurdles as a youth.[2] In 1970 he represented Bulgaria at the European Junior Championships in Colombes, but was eliminated in the first round.[3]

Bratanov equalled the Bulgarian record in the 400 m hurdles (51.8) in 1971; in 1972, he won the Bulgarian championship for the first time and improved the national record to 51.24.[2][4] He repeated as national champion in 1973 and 1974; at the 1974 European Championships in Rome he was eliminated in the semi-finals, but set a new Bulgarian record of 50.66.[2][4] In 1975 Bratanov won bronze at the European Indoor Championships in Katowice as the Bulgarian team's anchor in the 4 × 2 laps relay.[5]

At the 1976 European Indoor Championships in Munich Bratanov won gold in the men's 400 metres, setting a new Bulgarian indoor record of 47.79 in the final to defeat West Germany's defending champion Hermann Köhler.[2][5] Bratanov set his personal best in the 400 m hurdles, 49.77, in Fürth on 13 June 1976; he was the first Bulgarian to break 50 seconds.[2] He made his Olympic debut in Montreal later that summer, running 51.84 in the heats and 50.11 in the semi-finals; he qualified for the Olympic final, in which he placed sixth in 50.03.[1]

In total, Bratanov was a seven-time Bulgarian champion; five times outdoors in the 400 m hurdles (1972, 1973, 1974, 1978 and 1979) and twice indoors over 400 m (1974 and 1975).[4][6] At the 1978 European Championships in Prague Bratanov was eliminated in the semi-finals, but at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow he again qualified for the Olympic final; he was the only athlete to make the 400 m hurdles final in both Montreal and Moscow.[3][7] He suffered a cramp in the Moscow final and placed a clear last in 56.35.[2][7]

Coaching career

Bratanov retired as an athlete in 1983, but remained active in track and field as a coach. Initially, he coached in Bulgaria, moving to Qatar in 1992;[2][8] his Qatari pupils included Asian champions Samuel Francis and Femi Ogunode.[2] As of 2015, Bratanov is coaching in Bahrain; he coached Bahrain's team for the 2014 World Junior Championships in Eugene, Oregon, but was unable to attend personally after being denied a visa.[9][10]

References

  1. 1 2 "Yanko Bratanov Bio, Stats and Results". Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Vangelov, Aleksandr (10 June 2012). Янко Братанов "чукна" 60 (in Bulgarian). sportal.bg. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
  3. 1 2 Yanko Bratanov at Tilastopaja (registration required)
  4. 1 2 3 "Bulgarian Championships". Athletics Weekly. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
  5. 1 2 Jalava, Mirko (ed.) (2015). "Statistics Handbook – Praha 2015". European Athletics; Organising Committee European Athletics Indoor Prague 2015: 74, 188, 541.
  6. ↑ "Bulgarian Indoor Championships". Athletics Weekly. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
  7. 1 2 Siukonen, Markku; et al. (1980). Urheilutieto 5 (in Finnish). Oy Scandia Kirjat Ab. p. 374. ISBN 951-9466-20-7.
  8. ↑ Ivanova, Snezhana (13 June 2005). От 12 години Янко Братанов подготвя атлети в Катар (in Bulgarian). novinar.bg. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
  9. ↑ Daneva, Mimi (14 July 2014). Посолство отказа виза на най-успешния треньор Янко Братанов (аудио и снимки) (in Bulgarian). sliven-sport.com. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
  10. ↑ Landells, Steve (21 July 2015). "Naser takes a tip from George Michael and gets 400m gold in Cali". IAAF. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
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