Naim Süleymanoğlu (born January 23, 1967, Ptichar, Bulgaria—died November 18, 2017, Istanbul, Turkey) was a Bulgarian-born Turkish weightlifter who dominated the sport in the mid-1980s and ’90s.
Süleymanoğlu, the son of a miner of Turkish descent, began lifting weights at age 10, and at age 14 he came within 2.5 kg (5.5 pounds) of a world record. At age 15 he set his first world record. He was prevented from competing in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games by Bulgaria’s boycott. Standing at a height of 1.47 meters (4 feet 10 inches), Süleymanoğlu was nicknamed the “Pocket Hercules” and was dominant in the lighter body-weight categories.
In 1986 Süleymanoğlu defected to Turkey while competing at the World Cup tournament in Melbourne and adopted a Turkish form of his last name. Turkey paid Bulgaria more than $1 million to waive the Olympic rule barring athletes from participating for three years after changing nationality, and Süleymanoğlu competed for Turkey at the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games. He won an Olympic gold medal, Turkey’s first in weightlifting. He set world records in the 60-kg (132-pound) weight class in the snatch (152.5 kg [336 pounds]) and the clean and jerk (190 kg [419 pounds]) for a total of 342.5 kg (755 pounds)—an amazing 30 kg (66 pounds) more than his nearest competitor.
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Naim Süleymanoğlu was the first weightlifter to win gold medals at three consecutive Olympic Games.
Süleymanoğlu defended his gold medal at the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games, winning the snatch (142.5 kg [314 pounds]) and the clean and jerk (177.5 kg [391 pounds]) for a total of 320 kg (705 pounds). Competing in the 64-kg (141-pound) weight class at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, he again earned a gold medal, lifting 147.5 kg (325 pounds) in the snatch and 187.5 kg (413 pounds) in the clean and jerk for a world record total of 335 kg (738 pounds)—making him the sport’s first three-time gold medalist. After a three-year retirement, he returned to competition in 1999 and participated at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, but he failed to win a medal.
In 2001 the International Olympic Committee (IOC) awarded Süleymanoğlu with an Olympic Order, an honor bestowed on those who have made an outstanding contribution to sport and the Olympic movement.
