Boris Nikolov

On 1 August 1952, Boris Nikolov became the first Bulgarian to win an Olympic medal despite losing his semi-final match against eventual middleweight silver medalist Vasile Tiță at the 1952 Olympics. He took up boxing in 1945 and also competed at the 1956 Olympics and the 1953, 1955 and 1957 European Championships. He was also Bulgarian light-middleweight champion eight consecutive years (1950-57). Outside of sports, Nikolov was a career military man who served with the Bulgarian Air Force for 33 years, eventually retiring as a lieutenant colonel. He later worked as a boxing coach in his home town of Dobrich.