Mariya Petkova

Mariya Dimitrova Petkova (Bulgarian: Мария Димитрова Петкова, née Vergova (Вергова); born 3 November 1950 in Plovdiv) is a retired Bulgarian discus thrower. In 1976 she won an Olympic silver medal behind Evelin Schlaak, a standing that would repeat itself in 1980. This year she also achieved a personal best throw of 71.80 metres. In 1982 she won a European Championship silver medal behind countrywoman Tsvetanka Khristova, who is twelve years younger. One year later Petkova won the bronze medal at the first World Championships in Athletics.

Mariya Petkova
Personal information
Native nameМария Димитрова Леткова
Birth nameMariya Dimitrova Vergova
Full nameMariya Dimitrova Petkova
Born3 November 1950 (1950-11-03) (age 72)
Plovdiv, Bulgaria
Height1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Weight105 kg (231 lb)
Sport
SportAthletics
Event(s)Discus throw
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)71.80 m (1980)
Medal record
Women's athletics
Representing  Bulgaria
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 1976 Montreal Discus
Silver medal – second place 1980 Moscow Discus
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place 1983 Helsinki Discus
European Championships
Silver medal – second place1982 Athens Discus
Universiade
Gold medal – first place1975 RomeDiscus throw
Gold medal – first place1977 SofiaDiscus throw

Achievements
YearCompetitionVenuePositionNotes
Representing  Bulgaria
1975 World Student Games Rome, Italy 1st 65.28 m
1976 Summer Olympics Montreal, Canada 2nd 67.30 m
1977 World Student Games Sofia, Bulgaria 1st 66.34 m
1980 Summer Olympics Moscow, USSR 2nd 67.90 m
1982 European Championships Athens, Greece 2nd 67.94 m
1983 World Championships Helsinki, Finland 3rd 66.44 m

In 1974 Mariya Petkova bench pressed 210 kg without the use of supportive gear of any kind. This is more than any other woman in history.


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.