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299:. Despite jumping 8.16 metres in September 2004 and becoming Bulgarian indoor champion once again in February 2005, he did not compete in any major international competitions in 2005. Domestically, he finished second at the 2005 Bulgarian championships and the 2006 Bulgarian indoor championships, before winning the Balkan Indoor Championships and the Bulgarian championships in 2006. He barely managed to surpass the 8-metre mark during the season and finished lowly at the
377:. In 2012 at the age of 38, Atanasov announced he was retiring from professional athletics, but that he would still compete recreationally. He also started a business selling clothing modeled by Bulgarian athletes. His last outings in domestic competition were a 4th place at the 2013 Bulgarian indoor championships and a 6th place at the 2013 Bulgarian championships.
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2004 saw
Atanasov win both the Bulgarian indoor championships, the Balkan Indoor Championships and the Bulgarian championships. At the latter, he jumped 8.14 metres, his best to date on Bulgarian soil. Abroad, Atanasov also won the IAAF Grand Prix in Zagreb, but placed slightly lower at the
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Atanasov would never surpass 8 metres again, despite coming close in 2010. He won the
Bulgarian championship title in 7.98 metres, and also won the Bulgarian indoor championships yet again. He repeated the same double in 2011, when he also won a silver medal at the
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318:. Atanasov jumped 7.90 to finish fifth. He competed rather sparingly during the summer, and did not manage to top his 7.90 result a single time. He came closest at the Bulgarian championships where he won the silver medal in 7.87, but trailed far behind at the
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Atanasov's right leg is 2 cm shorter than his left. Although this would normally be considered a hindrance in the long jump, Atanasaov used it to his advantage by crouching before stepping on the board for takeoff.
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On national and regional level, Atanasov won the
Bulgarian Championships nine times, the Bulgarian Indoor Championships eight times, the Balkan Championships once and the Balkan Indoor Championships three times.
222:. Jumping 7.86 metres at the World Championships, he fell a few centimetres short of a place in the final. Atanasov had surpassed 8 metres for the first time that year, jumping 8.09 metres in February in
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252:. His only competition over 8 metres was the Bulgarian championships, which he won in 8.07 metres. Following another silver medal at the 2002 Bulgarian indoor championships, he was knocked out of the
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however, he only managed 7.62 metres and was knocked out in the qualification. This translated into a less eventful 2001, where he won silver at the national indoor championship and bronze at the
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and the
Sonatrach Meeting in Algiers, Atanasov jumped 8.31 metres on 27 July in Pyrgos. He won that meeting as well as the Thessaloniki International in August, before competing at the
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Atanasov would achieve his lifetime best in 2003. Following a string of second places, first at the
Bulgarian indoor championships and then in meets on foreign soil such as the
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In 2011, Atansov left
Lokomotiv Plovdiv and joined Beroe Stara Zagora due to financial reasons. Part of the conditions of his club change were to keep his same coach,
188:. At the Bulgarian championships, Atanasov won his first title in 1998 before spending the next year alternating with Petar Dachev as national champion; in addition,
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Atanasov won his first
Bulgarian indoor championship in 1996. His winning result of 7.22 metres was significantly shorter than the previous years when
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370:. At the 2010 European Championships, he failed to register a valid result. His last domestic title was the 2012 Bulgarian indoor championships.
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entered the rivalry to win the title in 2005. Nikolay
Atanasov also competed in sprints in his early career, winning the silver medal in the
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had dominated the sport, but
Atanasov would later jump on par with Georgiev's results, while maintaining a several-year-long rivalry with
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418:" was playing in cinemas at the time. Combining his father's name with the film's main character name, the "Joko" moniker was created.
177:. He was considered one of the most eccentric personalities in the sport, which made him appreciated by some but disliked by others.
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In 2007 Atanasov won four titles; the national and Balkan titles both indoor and outdoor, notably jumping 8.16 metres to win the
271:. 8.31 was the joint seventh best in the world in 2003, and the second best in the Balkans, wedged in between the Greek jumpers
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in 8.11 metres was followed by another
Bulgarian championship title, before failing to reach the final round at the
233:. He became Bulgarian indoor champion and finished second at the Bulgarian championships as well as meets including
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354:. On higher international level, he did not fare as well, being knocked out in the qualification at the
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He is now a coach for Lokomotiv Plovdiv. Atanasov-Joko is the coach and mentor of Bulgarian sprinter
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408:, who he is not related to. His nickname "Joko" comes from the fact that his father liked to drink
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title was his seventh. He followed that up by performing the best of all Bulgarian athletes at the
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in the 800 m and 1500 m. Coincidentally, his father has the same first and last name as his coach
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He competed representing the SCLA "Lokomotiv" Plovdiv athletics club. Atanasov was coached by
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yet again proved too hard, before he finally reached an international final at the
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in qualifying before missing most of the outdoor meets including the nationals.
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In 1999 he concentrated on the long jump, winning the silver medal at the
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In 2000 Atanasov improved to 8.20 metres, achieved in July 2000 in
342:. By now, Atanasov had reached the age of 35 and was considered a
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118:. His personal best jump is 8.31 metres, achieved in July 2003 in
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41:
322:. Much of the same happened in 2009, when a fifth place at the
758:"Bulgarian team robbed by injury | NEWS | World Athletics"
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at the 1998 Bulgarian championships, and competing in the
695:"Талант от Монтана щурмува световна титла на 100 метра"
817:
Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics
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Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Olympics
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Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Olympics
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World Athletics Championships athletes for Bulgaria
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26:
726:"Джоко - В трапа за скок дължина с китара в ръка"
614:"Николай Атанасов остана пети в скока на дължина"
310:in Sofia, his best ever jump on home soil. The
214:, winning the national championships and the
8:
336:2009 European Indoor Athletics Championships
19:
449:"Николай Атанасов – СКЛА ЛОКОМОТИВ ПЛОВДИВ"
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125:He competed at the World Championships in
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832:Bulgarian Athletics Championships winners
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633:"Джоко шампион на България за седми път"
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425:sprinter as well, having an unofficial
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212:Balkan Indoor Athletics Championships
7:
364:2011 European Indoor Championships
324:2009 European Indoor Championships
254:2002 European Indoor Championships
216:European Cup Second League Group B
151:2002 European Indoor Championships
37:(49 years, 288 days old)
14:
332:Bulgarian Athletics Championships
502:"Bulgarian Indoor Championships"
356:2010 World Indoor Championships
316:2008 World Indoor Championships
159:2008 World Indoor Championships
340:Bulgarian Athletics Federation
297:Olympic Games qualifying round
1:
822:Olympic athletes for Bulgaria
724:Краси Панов (20 March 2009).
75:Atanas Atanasov (long jumper)
589:"Senior 2003: Long Jump men"
802:Bulgarian male long jumpers
477:"Джоко: Сега е моето време"
368:2012 European Championships
360:2010 European Championships
301:2006 European Championships
218:meet, and competing at the
155:2006 European Championships
103:; born 11 December 1974 in
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693:topsport.bg (2012-03-17).
528:"Bulgarian Championships"
406:Atanas Zapryanov Atanasov
308:2007 Balkan Championships
265:2002 Balkan Championships
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421:Atanasov was a talented
328:2009 World Championships
312:2007 World Championships
269:2003 World Championships
235:Memorial Josefa Odlozila
220:1999 World Championships
56:Atanas Atanasov (runner)
676:"Джоко стана бизнесмен"
402:Bulgarian record-holder
396:Atanasov is the son of
137:, the Olympic Games in
412:, and a movie titled "
101:Николай Атанасов-Джоко
453:atletikalokomotiv.com
200:and long jump at the
93:Nikolay Atanasov-Joko
16:Bulgarian long jumper
730:IAMPP ATHLETICS NEWS
352:Balkan Championships
231:Dimitrovgrad, Serbia
27:Personal information
797:Athletes from Sofia
277:Dimitrios Filindras
161:, finishing fifth.
23:
762:worldathletics.org
658:"Джоко с нов клуб"
534:. Athletics Weekly
508:. Athletics Weekly
429:of 10.56 seconds.
320:2008 Olympic Games
261:Cezmi Or Memorial
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35:11 December 1974
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736:on 20 March 2009
732:. Archived from
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109:Nikolai Atanasov
107:), also spelled
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21:Nikolay Atanasov
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344:masters athlete
273:Louis Tsatoumas
175:Atanas Atanasov
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289:Madrid Meeting
190:Atanas Rusenov
182:Galin Georgiev
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765:. Retrieved
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415:Lemonade Joe
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330:. His 2009
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293:Gugl-Meeting
285:Athletissima
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250:Balkan Games
239:Golden Spike
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209:
205:Balkan Games
186:Petar Dachev
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108:
92:
91:
81:Now coaching
787:1974 births
699:Topsport.bg
275:(8.34) and
116:long jumper
781:Categories
767:2024-02-06
740:2024-02-06
705:2024-02-06
643:2024-01-28
598:2 February
538:2 February
512:2 February
487:2024-01-28
481:Sportal.bg
459:2024-01-28
433:References
423:100 metres
198:200 metres
194:100 metres
71:Coached by
618:classa.bg
241:. At the
113:Bulgarian
97:Bulgarian
410:lemonade
366:and the
279:(8.30).
153:and the
58:(father)
111:, is a
362:, the
358:, the
263:, the
169:Career
149:, the
120:Pirgos
49:Parent
224:Sofia
105:Sofia
66:Sport
42:Sofia
600:2024
540:2024
514:2024
291:and
247:2001
237:and
202:1998
147:2008
145:and
143:2004
139:2000
135:2007
133:and
131:2003
127:1999
32:Born
570:at
783::
760:.
749:^
728:.
714:^
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635:.
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591:.
548:^
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95:(
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