Nikola Petroff

Background

He was born in the town of Gorna Oryahovitsa, Bulgaria.

Career

Nikola Petrov fought in the First Balkan War. In 1921, he established his own private school of wrestling in Sofia. Petrov died in 1925 and was buried in his home town of Gorna Oryahovitsa.

Since 1963, a yearly tournament in the name of Nikola Petrov has been organized in Bulgaria.

In 1998, he was proclaimed an Honoured Citizen of Gorna Oryahovitsa. In his 25 year wrestling career, he was defeated once by Marijan Matijević.

Achievements

• On 20 July 1898, in New York, he earned the title "Champion of America". In the next year in Vienna, he became the European Champion in Greco-Roman wrestling. In 1900, during the Exposition Universelle in Paris, he defeated the Frenchman Paul Pons and became a world champion.