The Composition and Geography of Bulgarian Olympic Medals, 1952–2016     

Kaloyan Stanev 《国际体育史杂志》2013,30(15):1674-1694

Abstract

Bulgaria was one of the leading sport nations of the second half of the twentieth century; however, the Bulgarian national anthem has not been played at Olympic Games since 2008. In the current article, historical records on planning are compared to the results of athletes to determine the factors behind the remarkable rise and decline of Bulgarian sport during the last six decades. Historical geographical information systems (GISs) are used to analyze the spatial distribution of Olympic medals in each of the successfully developed sports. The data reveal that often the central Bulgarian planners failed to achieve the goals set in the ambitious programme of the totalitarian communist state. In spite of the efforts for diversification, Bulgaria’s success came from only seven sports mainly: less than any other of the leading sport nations during the 1970s and the 1980s. At the same time, the victories of Bulgarian athletes had little impact on the sport activity of the common Bulgarian.  相似文献