Antonio Krastev facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Antonio Krastev

Medal record
Men's weightlifting
Representing  Bulgaria
World Championships
Silver	1982 Ljubljana	+110 kg
Bronze	1983 Moscow	+110 kg
Gold	1985 Södertälje	+110 kg
Gold	1986 Sofia	+110 kg
Bronze	1987 Ostrava	+110 kg
European Championships
Silver	1982 Ljubljana	+110 kg
Bronze	1983 Moscow	+110 kg
Silver	1984 Vitoria	+110 kg
Gold	1986 Karl-Marx-Stadt	+110 kg
Gold	1987 Reims	+110 kg
Silver	1988 Cardiff	+110 kg
World Cup Final
Silver	1986 Melbourne	+110 kg
World Cup
Gold	1983 Varna	+110 kg
Gold	1986 Dobrich	+110 kg
Gold	1987 Pazardzhik	+110 kg
Gold	1988 Plovdiv	+110 kg
Junior World Championships
Silver	1979 Debrecen	+110 kg
Gold	1981 Lignano Sabbiadoro	+110 kg
Junior European Championships
Gold	1979 Debrecen	+110 kg
Gold	1981 Lignano Sabbiadoro	+110 kg
Balkan Championships
Gold	1982 Ankara	+110 kg
Gold	1986 Plovdiv	+110 kg
Silver	1978 Athens	+110 kg
Danube Cup
Gold	1987 Budapest	+110 kg
Bulgarian Championships
Gold	1982 Varna	+110 kg
Gold	1983 Varna	+110 kg
Gold	1984 Varna	+110 kg
Gold	1986 Kardzhali	+110 kg
Gold	1987 Yambol	+110 kg
Silver	1980 Sliven	+110 kg
Bulgarian Junior&Youth Championships
Gold	1981 Vidin	+110 kg
Gold	1980 Plovdiv	+110 kg
Gold	1979 Sliven	+110 kg
Gold	1978 Haskovo	+110 kg
Gold	1977 Targovishte	+110 kg
Silver	1976 Knezha	100 kg

Antonio Krastev (Bulgarian: Антонио Кръстев, 10 October 1961 – 9 July 2020) was a Bulgarian super heavyweight Olympic-style weightlifter best known for his 1987 heaviest ever snatch in IWF competition, at 216 kg. This was only equalled by Behdad Salimi of Iran at the 2016 Summer Olympics, and finally surpassed at the 2017 European Championships by Lasha Talakhadze, who now holds the record of 225 kg. Krastev's record was no longer official after the restructuring of the weight classes in 1993 and 1998.

Life

Krastev was born in Haskovo and was a two-time World Weightlifting Championships gold medalist and two time European Weightlifting Championships gold medalist, but never competed in the Olympic Games; he was originally intended to represent Bulgaria at the 1988 Olympic Games in the superheavyweight category.

Two of his teammates tested positive for Furosemide and the Bulgarian weightlifting federation pulled the rest of the team out of the competition the day before Krastev was scheduled to compete. At the time, Krastev was a two-time World champion and two-time European champion, and a heavy favorite for the gold medal.

Antonio Krastev later retired from weightlifting in Bulgaria, and moved to New York City, where he found employment as a nightclub bouncer. He began training, as his own coach, at the Lost Battalion Hall weightlifting gym, and he developed his strength to an internationally competitive level. Krastev applied for U.S. citizenship in order to compete as an American at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, but his application was denied, and he was thus unable to compete. Krastev eventually did obtain his American citizenship and resided in New York State.

He died at the age of 58 in a car accident on the night of July 9, 2020, in Minnesota.

Major results

Year	Venue	Weight	Snatch (kg)				Clean & Jerk (kg)				Total	Rank
			1	2	3	Rank	1	2	3	Rank
World Championships
1981	Lille, France	+110 kg	185			3	--			--	--	--
1982	Ljubljana, SFR Yugoslavia	+110 kg	200			1	242.5			2	442.5	2
1983	Moscow, Soviet Union	+110 kg	190			5	237.5			3	427.5	3
1985	Södertälje, Sweden	+110 kg	202.5			1	235			4	437.5	1
1986	Sofia, Bulgaria	+110 kg	215			1	245			2	460	1
1987	Ostrava, Czechoslovakia	+110 kg	216			1	245			4	460	3

World records

• 15 November 1986 Snatch - 212.5 kg Super Heavyweight Sofia
• 15 November 1986 Snatch - 215 kg Super Heavyweight Sofia
• 9 May 1987 Snatch - 215.5 kg Super Heavyweight Reims
• 9 May 1987 Total - 467.5 kg Super Heavyweight Reims
• 13 September 1987 Snatch - 216 kg Super Heavyweight Ostrava