Stefan Botev in training

See Stefan Botev (AUS) in his final training leading up to the 1995 World Weightlifting Championships (Guangzhou, China). One of Randall Strossen’s iconic IronMind Training Hall videos, it follows Botev through several days of training, including almost a dozen attempts in the snatch at 190 kg or higher, a 250-kg clean, and a 320-kg no-no-no squat. Appropriately enough, Botev went on to win the gold medal in the clean and jerk in the +108-kg class, doing 245 kg. Amazing stuff-and after you watch this video, you’ll want to train like a madman! Some lifters have watched this so many times, they have each workout memorized and can rattle off the lifts, weights, reps and sets. And watching any portion of this video pre-workout has been proven to produce PR performances.
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[@twrkhanasparukh]

What i like most about this dude is how low-key he looks. No veins popping or abdominals showing. Just a regular Joe, who happens to be able to squat 300kg, power clean 250kg and snatch 200kg.

[@Tesswrench111]

He's a white boy and he isn't jacked. Deal with it.

[@vintagelifts]

Bro is over 120kg with litteral horse legs still

[@grenadeout562]

@@Tesswrench111 what does race have to do with this, not that we are white anyways. Also that guy has tree trunk legs, I don't know what you're talking about

[@Tesswrench111]

@@grenadeout562 those who know, know. Not everything is for everyone.

[@mattjoshima6181]

@@grenadeout562 It's a reference to a quote by Brock Lesnar.

[@RainBoxRed]

8:00 Light squats today. Up to about 280. Nice and light.

[@feelsman7837]

Traditional Chinese squat racks

[@jonmolina948]

He did a 320kg squat before competing. Not sure how many days out.

[@johnnyfryar]

Bought this from IronMind back in the 90s. Probably watched it 10 times.

[@stallthedigger2599]

Botev's best back squat was 350 and he also power cleaned 240 at 110 kg bodyweight. An amazing lifter.

[@johnnyfryar]

He got screwed by bs weight classes. He should be HW and over 275 super heavy.

[@callmeacutekitten8106]

@@johnnyfryar bro he was 5'10in or 178cm 110kg he'd just add fat mass

[@1vootman]

The greatest weightlifting footage ever shot

[@xyhgu145]

Wow, just finished the whole clip...very impressive!!! The guy was a work-horse. Thanks for the upload.

[@PhilosophicalWeightlifting]

Very interesting bar path. I have always been taught/told to get my shoulders over the bar after the first pull. He stays incredibly vertical, getting over just slightly. Phenomenal technique.

[@ilyailindu07]

His style is unique. The 250 clean is magic !!

[@jlushefski]

The training videos featuring Stefan Botev are probably the best ones ever--super thorough, and the workouts are heavy and exciting.

[@xgamermudkip7154]

Check out the videos of Ilya Ilyin on weightlifting house

[@georgistoynev2937]

Първият човек ,който вкара на пазара Musashi в българският пазар.Най-добрите добавки и креатин!!!

[@8acun]

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW YESSS THANKYOU IRONMIND!!!

[@SheldonKreger]

Thanks for uploading this historical footage. What an incredible athlete!

[@SmallersCY]

thanks for posting this gem for people Randy, I have this dvd but its always a fun watch

[@avwl0]

Sean Cavey I believe this is the Guangzhou DVD, check ironmind store

[@qtpie2630]

ironmind.com

[@SoulFlyShogun]

SmallersCY zzz zzzi

[@jordankroell]

My favorite lifting video of all time. Thank you so much for posting!!!!!!

[@user-xt5qb2yr6x]

Amen to that been watching this since day one

[@psl127]

After all the snatching and clean and jerk. Hes got energy for the big squats

[@alagon]

+J Henn The magic of steroids.

[@maxaffe3195]

@@alagon also conditioning. squats arent the most taxing after all.

[@mattsalvatore3193]

@@alagon Still possible to train like this without steroids. Obviously less volume & intensity, but same principles.

[@Dashyrre]

@@mattsalvatore3193 Stefan has admitted to taking roids tho. You can't work 10/12 hours of weights all day every single day and not be geared up.

[@mattsalvatore3193]

@@Dashyrre I don't think even olympic lifters train 12 hours per day. 3 x 1-2 hour sessions?

[@undahandz]

Thank you very much for uploading this!

[@nastyk57]

Thank you!!!!

[@vintagelifts]

Stefan botev is my favorite weightlifter ever

[@mimicat11]

Thank you for posting, love it

[@matt1548]

Thanks a ton for posting this!

[@SpoWipablo]

amazing video. Great commentary

[@compounding_gains]

Pure inspiration

[@ggochkov]

In 1988 because of this man success along with the other bulgarian phenomenal weigh-lifters, the bulgarian team was discarded from Seoul olympic games as they threatened the great countries titles (USA, USSR...) in weighlifting and would potentially it would have been a dramatic failure in competition for them. Have in mind until then Stefan Botev has never ever been even accused or pointed out as taking forbidden stimulants.

[@stan9036]

But, he was. At this level athletes despite being the best of the best, have to take stuff

[@ggochkov]

@@stan9036 Legal staff OK but forbidden is a trademark for the great countries only. Who's paying the money after all?! We do what we do, but finally the Olympics are one big lie, and while there is a special permission to use stimulants for definite athletes like Simon Biles, Serena Williams and etc. for example: www.nytimes.com/2016/09/14/sports/simone-biles-serena-venus-williams-russian-hackers-doping.html. So what do you think finally?

[@FearWarboar4135]

Ivan Abidchiev documented his athletes dosages and some athletes who were taking 240 oral steroids a week. So I’m just saying they were all doping like crazy.

[@jeffmuenster5131]

Yeah, but remember, 2 or 3 of the team's lifters, including Angel Guenchev, tested positive for steroids; thus, they were booted out.

[@ggochkov]

​@@FearWarboar4135 You'd propably familiar with the training system of Ivan Abadjiev?! Or you propaply know only the steriods dossages? Is there allowed steriods? Or it is fair to compete with one taking bunch of steriods without himself being checked, because he is from USA, UK, Canada and all of these countries investing in the sport all over the world including control organs like WADA?

[@unAbated.]

Absolute beast!

[@greatgibson0]

Wait... where is his belt?? oh he doesn't need one

[@mattsalvatore3193]

"Light squat session" 260kg x 5 280kg x 3

[@κψαρεματσουχτρας]

One of the best vids.Thank you ironmind

[@MrOnceinside]

We need Kurlovich's Training vids... I bet those are hard to get though.

[@lewiselliott9038]

The baddest man to walk the planet 🌎

[@mrklesk1337]

Amazing lifting. Late in the video when he squats 320 after an insane session of snatching up to 200 and c&j to 240 absolute beast.

[@HIMCULES]

Just read Varbanov's interview yesterday. He was asked what were some of the most impressive lifts he had seen in his time and he said Botev did 380kgx5 and 450kgx1

[@PPRhydon]

Do you have the source by any chance? Sounds ridiculous asf, but I wouldn't be surprised if he did.

[@HIMCULES]

@@PPRhydon www.weightliftinghouse.com/2019/05/03/alexander-varbanov-interview-part-1-biggest-training-lifts-of-the-bulgarian-team/

[@PPRhydon]

@@HIMCULES I appreciate it man.

[@vintagelifts]

He didnt tho his max back squat is 350 (source botev himself in interview with weightlifting house)

[@HIMCULES]

@@vintagelifts Botev should know best

[@choural]

for now i will mimic the right foot tilt before a heavy squat,i think its most important :P

[@redhelinux6679]

Beast!

[@georgistoynev2937]

The only Bulgarian to bring the Musashi brand to the Bulgarian market.

[@davidkinslow]

7:38 when he’s explaining what he was doing in training prior to what he was doing currently in this is insane 🥶

[@ECGwarrior]

awesome video!! do you plan on uploading any other long ones like this?

[@chrislaverick6413]

Botev and marc huster have the most solid jerks that i can recall, if they clean it, its going over head

[@haroldpepete]

Botev trainning session was insane and he did not use belt at anytime, according to an interview he lifted 270 and he was going to tray in a olympic games but his coach doesn't permit it

[@Donantonio26]

He did 260 in training. He was getting ready to attempt to C+J 270 but his coach Ivan Abajiev told him not too because the risk was too high. Ivan said he could attempt it after he wins the olympics that year (1988 Seoul, Korea). However, he never got the chance to compete as Bulgaria as a country pulled all of their athletes out after lighter athletes tested positive for banned substances. Had he competed, he was ready to hit 210+260=470@110 which would have given him a Sinclair of 504.5. 4.5 points higher than Niam Soleymanlou.

[@xyhgu145]

Is the first snatch not 170? It looks like two reds, one blue, one white = (25 + 25 + 20 + 5)x2 + 20 (bar) = 170.

[@22448824]

The bar gets to mid thigh, barely lifting his heels then he goes for it. Same principal in the jerk. Heels hardly leave the ground then he splits. The short arms and great lockout certainly help.

[@cannonfodder8287]

If you play the video at .25 speed it sounds like what I would imagine the inside of an alien spacecraft would sound like.

[@8acun]

haha Telstra shirt - onya Australia!

[@BottleDeposit]

12:43 "This is a guy who was rumoured to have clean and jerked 270" Somehow I find this hard to believe because even Lasha ended up maxing out on the C & J when the bar reached that weight during training

[@williamhall9204]

@BottleDeopt I don’t believe Botev ever clean&jerked 270 kgs. However I do think it’s possible he may have done 260 kgs. In training.This guy had some incredible work capacity. He really seems to thrive on the big workload.

[@jordangroff8978]

I wonder what he could squat 100% fresh? 340-350?

[@bloodiaper]

just got a sub, IronMind. great stuff

[@Mani_Matter]

One of the best natural bodybuilder

[@isaacpiper510]

Wasn’t natural and quite clearly not a bodybuilder

[@Mani_Matter]

@@isaacpiper510 hater

[@isaacpiper510]

@@Mani_Matter I mean, you don’t know what you’re talking about so…

[@Mani_Matter]

@@isaacpiper510 wanna be a hater now?

[@isaacpiper510]

@@Mani_Matter all I’m saying is that he was not a bodybuilder as clearly shown and he was also not natural

[@nicklol328]

SUper strong

[@KwisBwown]

❤❤❤

[@dimitrezahariev2355]

Bulgarians is only 7 millions

[@ieod-ri2zp]

Are these hercules barbell

[@katzenmoyer45]

Anybody know the name of the plates which aren't Eleikos?.....They had 2 different layers of rubber in the bumpers.

[@giulianodesabata9650]

Does anybody know what shoes is Stefan wearing?

[@RainBoxRed]

Giuliano De Sabata looks like adidas.

[@davidadeyemo7811]

His own show

[@22448824]

Really? Why do you care about the style of lifting shoe? They didn’t.

[@surrealtom]

@@22448824 its not about style, its about effectiveness (and, in this case, heritage)

[@bugida3266]

holy fuck

[@darimanc1]

bulgarian method???

[@dickpiano1802]

Dario Manca No, Stefan Botev always had his own coach and prepared separately from the national team. I read this in an interview.

[@IlianNachev]

Of course it was the Bulgarian method. All of the elite lifters in Bulgaria had their personal coaches, but they all answered to Ivan Abadjiev. When they went to the national gym to prepare for a competition, they all submitted to his methods and directions. I have very close friends who were training in that gym and I was there watching them in the presence of Ivan Abadjiev.

[@frfrpr]

We can see Iron Mind on the bottom of the screen so why in the hell is it also showing in the middle of the screen? Viewers deserve to be treated better than this.

[@1.8Troubles]

Legitimately didn't even notice until I read your comment. Thanks

[@andrew98115wl]

174?

[@jkizzle9953]

Putting a watermark over the entire video is a dick move

[@SuperOlds88]

His forearms are the size of his girlfriends thighs.

[@jerrynash7886]

Vrrrrrrooooooom!

[@Kissmeluck]

Почему-то у болгар, все штангисты сальные, толстые, а советские были прекрасно сложены- Ригерт, Варданян, Михалёв, Кузнецов, Писаренко, Курлович?! Что они ели?

[@eduardoortiz8657]

Los búlgaros tienen mejor genética de fuerza y por lo tanto, menores dosis de esteroides.

[@AlekoDulu]

with a big blue logo all over? please...can you tell me where is the Bulgarian original of that video?

[@ЖекаКузя-ч3м]

Весь видос посмотрел, тип мощный жесть.

[@Munted846]

Aussie aussie aussie....

[@jacklauren9359]

There’s no Aussie mader packer. Even your idol Bruce can’t hack it and was given the ticket to qualify 😂