Background
Bratanov was born in Sliven on 10 June 1952.
Bratanov was born in Sliven on 10 June 1952.
After his athletic career he has worked as a coach in Qatar and Bahrain. Athletic career
He took up athletics early, initially competing in the 110 m hurdles but switching to the 400 m hurdles as a youth. In 1970 he represented Bulgaria at the European Junior Championships in Colombes, but was eliminated in the first round.
Bratanov set his personal best in the 400 m hurdles, 49.77, in Fürth on 13 June 1976.
He was the first Bulgarian to break 50 seconds. He made his Olympic debut in Montreal later that summer, running 51.84 in the heats and 50.11 in the semi-finals.
He qualified for the Olympic final, in which he placed sixth in 50.03. At the 1978 European Championships in Prague Bratanov was eliminated in the semi-finals, but at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow he again qualified for the Olympic final.
He was the only athlete to make the 400 m hurdles final in both Montreal and Moscow.
He suffered a cramp in the Moscow final and placed a clear last in 56.35. Coaching career
Bratanov retired as an athlete in 1983, but remained active in track and field as a coach. Initially, he coached in Bulgaria, moving to Qatar in 1992.
His Qatari pupils included Asian champions Samuel Francis and Femi Ogunode.
As of 2015, Bratanov is coaching in Bahrain. He coached Bahrain"s team for the 2014 World Junior Championships in Eugene, Oregon, but was unable to attend personally after being denied a visa.