Aleksandar Nikolov

During the 1930s Aleksandar Nikolov was one of the best cyclists in Bulgaria, winning multiple national and regional races. Nikolov had his first major success in 1931 when he won the Tour of Vitosha. This was followed by several wins in endurance races and one-day races. In 1934 in Sofia he set a national record for the hour race that would last for a decade.

For much of 1935 and early 1936 Nikolov rode in races to qualify for the Berlin Olympics, with him finishing second in the Tour of Bulgaria. At the Olympics the Bulgarian team had minimal time to train and prepare, with new bicycles arriving only one day before the race. Nonetheless, Nikolov competed in the road race where he finished the course, but his time was not recorded. Following the Olympics he continued to win races on both the road and track before a serious injury ended his career in 1939. A book about Nikolov’s life was published in Bulgaria in 2007.