Aleksandar Stefanov Shalamanov ( bg, Александър Cтефанов Шаламанов) (4 September 1941– 25 October 2021) was a football player and professional

alpine skier Alpine skiing, or downhill skiing, is the pastime of sliding down snow-covered slopes on skis with fixed-heel bindings, unlike other types of skiing ( cross-country, Telemark, or ski jumping), which use skis with free-heel bindings. Whether for ...

and is known as the only Bulgarian who has participated in the

Winter Olympics The Winter Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'hiver) is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were h ...

(as

in 1960) and in the

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...

. The Summer Olympics saw him as reserve player of the

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Sum ...

team in 1964, but he did not play in a match. Shalamanov began his career as a defender with

CSKA Sofia CSKA Sofia ( bg, ЦСКА София) is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Sofia and currently competing in the country's premier football competition, the First League. ''CSKA'' is an abbreviation for ''Central Sport ...

in 1960–61, but moved to

Slavia Sofia PFC Slavia Sofia ( bg, ПФК Славия София) is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Sofia, which currently competes in the top tier of the Bulgarian football league system, the First League. Slavia's home groun ...

in 1961 to remain there until 1974, when he retired after 263 matches in the Bulgarian Championship, three

Bulgarian Cup The Bulgarian Cup ( bg, Купа на България, Kupa na Bulgaria) is a Bulgarian annual football competition. It is the country's main cup competition and all officially registered Bulgarian football teams take part in it. The tournamen ...

trophies (1963, 1964 and 1966) and a

Cup Winners' Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tournam ...

semi-final in 1967. Shalamanov has twice been selected Best Bulgarian Footballer, in 1963 and 1966, and twice Best Bulgarian Sportsman, in 1967 and 1973. He has 42 caps for the Bulgaria national team, with which he participated in the World Cup 1966 and World Cup 1970. On 26 October 2021, a day after his death, the team announced that the stadium would be renamed in his honor to Aleksandar Shalamanov Stadium.

Personal life

He was the father of the Alpine skier Stefan Shalamanov.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shalamanov, Aleksandar 1941 births 2021 deaths Bulgarian footballers Bulgarian male alpine skiers Bulgarian men's volleyball players Olympic alpine skiers of Bulgaria Alpine skiers at the 1960 Winter Olympics PFC CSKA Sofia players 1966 FIFA World Cup players 1970 FIFA World Cup players Bulgaria international footballers PFC Slavia Sofia players First Professional Football League (Bulgaria) players Association football defenders Sportspeople from Sofia