Naim Süleymanoğlu

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Naim Süleymanoğlu
A man in a blue leotard lifting weights.
Süleymanoğlu in 1996
Personal information
Birth nameNaim Suleymanoğlu
Nickname(s)The Pocket Hercules
NationalityTurkish
CitizenshipBulgaria & Turkey
Born(1967-01-23)23 January 1967
Ptichar, Kardzhali Province, Bulgaria
Died18 November 2017(2017-11-18) (aged 50)
Istanbul, Turkey
Years active1982–2000
Height1.47 m (4 ft 10 in) (2000)
Weight62 kg (137 lb) (2000)
Sport
CountryBulgaria Bulgaria (1977–1986)
Turkey Turkey (1986–2000)
SportOlympic weightlifting
Event(s)56 kg (1983), 60 kg (1985–1992), 64 kg (1993–1996), 62 kg (2000)
Turned pro1983
Retired2000
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)
  • Snatch: 152.5 kg (1988, WR)
  • Clean & Jerk: 190.0 kg (1988, WR)
  • Total: 342.5 (1988, WR)
hide
Medal record
Representing  Turkey
Olympic Games
Olympic rings.svg
Gold medal – first place 1988 Seoul -60 kg
Gold medal – first place 1992 Barcelona -60 kg
Gold medal – first place 1996 Atlanta -64 kg
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 1989 Athens -60 kg
Gold medal – first place 1991 Donaueschingen -60 kg
Gold medal – first place 1993 Melbourne 64 kg
Gold medal – first place 1994 Istanbul -64 kg
Gold medal – first place 1995 Guangzhou -64 kg
European Championships
Gold medal – first place 1988 Cardiff -60 kg
Gold medal – first place 1989 Athens -60 kg
Gold medal – first place 1994 Sokolov -64 kg
Gold medal – first place 1995 Warsaw -64 kg
Silver medal – second place 1992 Szekszárd -60 kg
Bronze medal – third place 2000 Sofia -62 kg
Representing  Bulgaria
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 1985 Södertälje -60 kg
Gold medal – first place 1986 Sofia -60 kg
Silver medal – second place 1983 Moscow -56 kg
European Championships
Gold medal – first place 1984 Vitoria -56 kg
Gold medal – first place 1985 Katowice -60 kg
Gold medal – first place 1986 Karl-Marx-Stadt -60 kg
Silver medal – second place 1983 Moscow -56 kg
World Junior Championships
Gold medal – first place -52 kg
Gold medal – first place -56 kg
Gold medal – first place -60 kg
Gold medal – first place -56 kg
Gold medal – first place -60 kg
Gold medal – first place -60 kg
Friendship Games
Gold medal – first place 1984 Varna -56 kg
Updated on 2019.

Naim Süleymanoğlu (23 January 1967 – 18 November 2017) was a Turkish Olympic weightlifter. He was a seven-time World Weightlifting champion and a three-time Olympic gold medalist and set multiple world records. He is widely considered to have been the best pound for pound Olympic weightlifter of all time, and one of the greatest Olympic weightlifters ever.[1]

At the 1988 Summer Olympics, he set multiple world records in the snatch, clean and jerk, and total.[2] He was awarded the Olympic Order in 2001. In 2000 and 2004, he was elected a member of the International Weightlifting Federation Hall of Fame.[3]

Süleymanoğlu is the first and only weightlifter to have snatched 2.5 times his body weight and also is the second of only seven lifters to date to clean and jerk three times his body weight.[4] He is the only weightlifter to date to clean and jerk 10 kilos more than triple his bodyweight.[5]

Biography[]

Early life[]

Süleymanoğlu was born (Bulgarian: Наим Сюлейманов, romanized: Naim Syuleĭmanov) in Ptichar, Kardzhali Province, Bulgaria to an ethnic Turkish family. His father was a miner who stood only five feet tall, while his mother was four-foot-seven.[6] He won championships in his teens and would have been the overwhelming favorite to win gold at the 1984 Summer Olympics had Bulgaria not joined in a boycott by the Eastern Bloc.[7]

In the 1980s, Bulgaria's government implemented a program called the Revival Process which required ethnic minorities to adopt Slavic names and barred their languages.[8] As a result, Süleymanoğlu was forced to change his name to Naum Shalamanov (Bulgarian: Наум Шаламанов) in 1985. He decided to leave Bulgaria after these experiences and he conducted encrypted correspondence with Turkish Squad during the period.[6][9]

While on a trip to the World Cup Final in Melbourne in 1986, Süleymanoğlu escaped his handlers, and after several days in hiding, he defected at the Turkish Embassy in Canberra. When Embassy officials reported the situation to Turgut Özal, The Prime Minister ordered him to be brought at once. He landed in London first, where he was transferred into a private jet to fly into Istanbul and Ankara eventually. After making his way to Istanbul, he changed his name back to Süleymanoğlu.[6]

"Against all the odds, I've never been nostalgic. After being treated with such attitude, you wouldn't regret it. The Bulgarians changed the names of 2 million people by force. It was a very difficult period. People who witnessed the events would know. I wouldn't change any of the decisions I took that day in my life. Even if I could set back the clock, I would still escape Bulgaria. Because as the Turkish people, we were too hard-pressed in Bulgaria."[10]

Career[]

In order for him to compete at the 1988 Seoul Olympics the Bulgarian government had to agree to release his eligibility to Turkey. The Turks paid Bulgaria $1.25 million for his release.[7] At the Olympics, his main competition was his old teammate from the Bulgarian team, Stefan Topurov. He came out for the snatch portion of the competition after all other athletes had finished and made three consecutive lifts, setting world records in his last two attempts. In the clean and jerk portion, Topurov completed a 175.0 kg clean and jerk after Süleymanoğlu, with his next two lifts Süleymanoğlu set two more world records and won his first Olympic gold. His last lift was a 190.0 kg clean and jerk that was 3.15 times his bodyweight,[11] which is the highest ratio clean and jerk to bodyweight of all time. Using the Sinclair coefficient his performance at the 1988 Seoul Olympics was the most dominating weightlifting performance of all time.[12] His total was high enough to win the weight class above his.[13] He retired at the age of 22, after winning the world championship in 1989. However, he returned in 1991 to win a second Olympic gold medal in Barcelona in 1992 and a third one in Atlanta in 1996. He would do his final lifting at Summer Olympics in Sydney in 2000.[14]

The 1996 Olympic Games were to be his swan song and he retired after winning a third consecutive Olympic gold medal in Atlanta at the 1996 Olympic Games. That competition was noted for the rivalry between him and Greece's Valerios Leonidis, with the arena divided into partisan Turkish and Greek crowds. At the end of the competition they were the very last competitors remaining as they traded three straight world-record lifts; Süleymanoğlu managed to raise 187.5 kg and then Leonidis failed in his attempt to lift 190 kg, which guaranteed him the silver medal. Announcer Lynn Jones proclaimed "You have just witnessed the greatest weightlifting competition in history," according to Ken Jones in the London Independent.[15][16][17][18]

Süleymanoğlu made another comeback in a late attempt to earn a fourth gold medal at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, which would have been an Olympic record, but failed three attempts at 145 kg[19] and was eliminated from the competition. He was awarded the Olympic Order in 2001. In 2000 and 2004, he was elected member of the International Weightlifting Federation Hall of Fame.[3]

At the 1999 general elections, he stood as an independent candidate to represent Bursa at the Grand National Assembly of Turkey. In 2002, he was the candidate of the Nationalist Movement Party for the mayor of Kıraç municipality in Büyükçekmece district of Istanbul Province and represented the same party in general elections in 2006. He was unsuccessful in all these attempts.[20]

He suffered from cirrhosis of the liver for a long time.[21] In 2009, he was in hospital for nearly three months.[22]

Death and aftermath[]

Grave of Naim Süleymanoğlu at Edirnekapı Cemetery, Istanbul.

On 25 September 2017, he was admitted to a hospital due to liver failure.[21] On 6 October, a liver transplantation was made when a liver donor was found.[21] On 11 November, he had surgery due to a hemorrhage in the brain and a subsequent edema. He died on 18 November 2017.[23] He was interred at the Edirnekapı Martyr's Cemetery in Istanbul.[24]

After his death, a movie about his life and career, Cep Herkülü: Naim Süleymanoğlu[25] was released in Turkey on November 22, 2019.

A Japanese woman claimed after his death that she had a daughter Sekai Mori by him, and filed a paternity case at a Turkish court. Süleymanoğlu's grave was opened on July 4, 2018 to take a DNA sample.[24] A DNA test confirmed her claim.[26] He also had three daughters by a Turkish woman.[27]

Major results[]

Year Venue Weight Snatch (kg) Clean & Jerk (kg) Total Rank
1 2 3 Rank 1 2 3 Rank
Olympic Games
1988 South Korea Seoul, South Korea 60 kg 145.0 150.5 WR 152.5 WR 1 175.0 188.5 WR 190.0 WR 1 342.5 WR 1st place, gold medalist(s)
1992 Spain Barcelona, Spain 60 kg 142.5 153 153 1 170 177.5 — 1 320 1st place, gold medalist(s)
1996 United States Atlanta, United States 64 kg 145 147.5 147.5 1 180 185 187.5 1 335 WR 1st place, gold medalist(s)
2000 Australia Sydney, Australia 62 kg 145 145 145 — — — — — — —
World Championships
1983 Soviet Union Moscow, Soviet Union 56 kg 130.0 WR — — 1st place, gold medalist(s) 160.0 — — 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 290.0 2nd place, silver medalist(s)
1985 Sweden Södertälje, Sweden 60 kg 142.5 — — 1st place, gold medalist(s) 180.0 — — 1st place, gold medalist(s) 322.5 1st place, gold medalist(s)
1986 Bulgaria Sofia, Bulgaria 60 kg 147.5 WR — — 1st place, gold medalist(s) 187.5 — — 1st place, gold medalist(s) 335.5 WR 1st place, gold medalist(s)
1989 Greece Athens, Greece 60 kg 140.0 145.0 — 1st place, gold medalist(s) 172.5 172.5 192.5 1st place, gold medalist(s) 317.5 1st place, gold medalist(s)
1991 Germany Donaueschingen, Germany 60 kg 135.0 137.5 140.0 1st place, gold medalist(s) 165.0 172.5 180.0 1st place, gold medalist(s) 310.0 1st place, gold medalist(s)
1993 Australia Melbourne, Australia 64 kg 140.0 145.0 — 1st place, gold medalist(s) 175.0 177.5 WR — 1st place, gold medalist(s) 322.5 WR 1st place, gold medalist(s)
1994 Turkey Istanbul, Turkey 64 kg 142.5 145.0 147.5 WR 1st place, gold medalist(s) 177.5 181.0 182.5 WR 1st place, gold medalist(s) 330.0 WR 1st place, gold medalist(s)
1995 China Guangzhou, China 64 kg 145.0 145.0 147.5 1st place, gold medalist(s) 180.0 185.0 — 1st place, gold medalist(s) 327.5 1st place, gold medalist(s)
Friendship Games
1984 Bulgaria Varna, Bulgaria 56 kg 132.5 — — 1 165.0 — — 1 297.5 1st place, gold medalist(s)

Career bests[]

References[]

  1. ^ https://www.upi.com/Archives/1988/09/20/Naim-Suleymanoglu-considered-pound-for-pound-the-worlds-best-weightlifter-shattered/7479590731200/
  2. ^ "Biography of Naim Süleymanoğlu". www.sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on April 17, 2020. Retrieved August 7, 2014.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b "Weightlifting Hall of Fame". International Weightlifting Federation. Archived from the original on 2008-09-13. Retrieved 2008-08-07.
  4. ^ "Naim Suleymanoglu". www.olympic.org.
  5. ^ "Who in the world has ever lifted three times their body weight?". chidlovski.net.
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b c Sandomir, Richard (2017-11-22). "Naim Suleymanoglu, 50, Dies; Weight Lifting's 'Pocket Hercules'". New York Times.
  7. ^ Jump up to: a b "Suleymanoglu Lifts Weights and Hearts with Extraordinary Hat-Trick". olympic.org. 1988-09-22.
  8. ^ The Policies of the Bulgarian Communist Party towards Jews, Roma, Pomaks and Turks (1944-89) Archived 2007-09-26 at the Wayback Machine (Bulgarian). By Ulrich Büchsenschütz. International Center for Minority Studies and Intercultural Relations, 2000. Retrieved 26 May 2012.
  9. ^ "The Revival Process and Naim Süleymanoğlu". Retrieved 2021-01-21.
  10. ^ "Interview with Naim Süleymanoğlu". Retrieved 2021-01-21.
  11. ^ LA Time. "THE SEOUL GAMES / DAY 5 : YOU NAME IT, HE LIFTS IT : Suleymanoglu Sets 3 World Records, Gives Turkey 1st Weightlifting Gold". Retrieved 15 December 2018.
  12. ^ Ledder, Glenn (2013). "Mathematics for the Life Sciences" p. 16. https://books.google.com/books?id=0VeRAAAAQBAJ&lpg=PA16&ots=QfYf6PjYmn&dq=Sinclair%20Coefficients%20naim%20suleymanoglu&pg=PA16#v=onepage&q=Sinclair%20Coefficients%20naim%20suleymanoglu&f=false
  13. ^ "Naim Suleymanoglu Bio, Stats and Results". www.sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on 2020-04-17.
  14. ^ ""The Pocket Hercules" Süleymanoğlu Breaks Weightlifting World Record - Seoul 1988 Olympics".
  15. ^ 1996 Olympics Day 4. sportsillustrated.cnn.com
  16. ^ Naim Suleymanoglu - A Third Gold Medal - Leonidas, World, Competition, and Jones - JRank Articles. Sports.jrank.org. Retrieved on 2014-08-10.
  17. ^ The New York Times: This Day In Sports. Nytimes.com (1996-07-22). Retrieved on 2014-08-10.
  18. ^ Beijing 2008 Olympic Games: Mount Olympus Meets the Middle Kingdom. Encyclopædia Britannica
  19. ^ "Süleymanoglu Naim (TUR)". www.iat.uni-leipzig.de.
  20. ^ "'Pocket Hercules,' 3-time Olympic weightlifting champion, dies at 50 | CBC Sports". CBC. Retrieved 2018-01-30.
  21. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Champion Turkish weightlifter Süleymanoğlu dies at 50". Hürriyet Daily News. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
  22. ^ http://www.novinite.ru/articles/26955/Брат+Наима+Сулейманоглу%3A+И+в+Болгарии+есть+люди%2C+которые+хотят+стать+донорами
  23. ^ "Weightlifting legend Naim Süleymanoğlu dies at age 50". 18 November 2017. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
  24. ^ Jump up to: a b "Naim Süleymanoğlu'nun mezarı açıldı". Hürriyet (in Turkish). 4 July 2018. Retrieved 21 August 2019.
  25. ^ "Cep Herkülü: Naim Süleymanoğlu (2019)". www.imdb.com. Retrieved 2020-02-08.
  26. ^ "Paternity test confirms Naim Süleymanoğlu's Japanese daughter". Daily Sabah. 8 August 2018. Retrieved 20 November 2019.
  27. ^ Danyıldız, Canan (19 November 2017). "Naim Süleymanoğlu: İtiraf ediyorum, gizlediğim 4 çocuğum var!". Posta. Retrieved 20 November 2019.
  28. ^ "World records from 1972 – 1992". Retrieved 2009-10-09.
  29. ^ "Naim Suleymanoglu". chidlovski.net.
  30. ^ Ledder, Glenn (29 August 2013). Mathematics for the Life Sciences: Calculus, Modeling, Probability, and Dynamical Systems. Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN 978-1-4614-7276-6.

External links[]

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