Petar Merkov

Who is Petar Merkov?

Petar Hristov Merkov is a Bulgarian sprint canoer who competed in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Competing in three Summer Olympics, he who won two silver medals at Sydney in 2000. Prior to those games, Merkov was subjected to controversy for failing a doping test in Bulgaria which led to over a dozen canoeing nations petitioning the International Canoe Federation for an investigation, only to have Bulgarian officials stonewall on his behalf to compete. He would later refuse to attend the post-race press conference of K-1 1000 m in the wake of those allegations.

Merkov was K-1 500 m European champion in 1999.

At the ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships, Merkov won silver medals in the K-1 500 m event in 1999 and 2002. In 2002, he also won a bronze in K-4 1000 m.

Merkov is 188 cm tall and weighs 95 kg. He is currently a member of the Levski Canoe/Kayak Club club in Sofia.