Dimitar Zahariev

Bulgarian Dimitar Zahariev was a volleyball player who represented the national team before becoming their coach. At the inaugural Volleyball World Championship in 1949 in Czechoslovakia, Zahariev was part of the Bulgarian team that won the bronze medal. Bulgaria repeated their success at the tournament’s next edition in 1952 in the Soviet Union. At the 1964 Tokyo Olympics Zahariev was the head coach of the Bulgarian team where they finished in sixth place.

By 1980 Zahariev had moved to Greece to coach Olympiacos. Over the next four years the team won two Greek championship titles (1981, 1983), and two Greek Cups (1981, 1983). In the 1981-82 season Zahariev led Olympiacos to a fourth-place finish in the Volleyball Champions Cup, the first top-four finish in the tournament by any Greek club.