Nicolae Martinescu (24 February 1940 – 1 April 2013) was a Greco-Roman wrestler from Romania. He competed at the 1964, 1968, 1972 and 1976 Olympics and won a gold medal in 1972, placing third in 1968 and fourth in 1964. At the 1976 Olympics he served as the flag bearer for Romania at the opening ceremony.[2] Martinescu won a European title in 1966 and five medals at the world championships between 1963 and 1974.[3] Domestically he collected 18 Romanian national titles between 1961 and 1978.[1]

Nicolae Martinescu
Personal information
Born24 February 1940
Vişani, Romania
Died1 April 2013 (aged 73)
Bucharest, Romania
Height183 cm (6 ft 0 in)
Sport
SportGreco-Roman wrestling
ClubDunarea Galati
CS Dinamo București[1]
Medal record
Men's Greco-Roman wrestling
Representing  Romania
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 1968 Mexico City 97 kg
Gold medal – first place 1972 Munich 100 kg
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 1963 Helsingborg 97 kg
Bronze medal – third place 1966 Toledo 97 kg
Bronze medal – third place 1967 Bucharest 97 kg
Silver medal – second place 1971 Sofia 100 kg
Bronze medal – third place 1974 Katowice 100 kg
European Championships
Gold medal – first place 1966 Essen 97 kg
Bronze medal – third place 1973 Helsinki 97 kg
Mioara Velicu and Nicolae Martinescu

In 1972, he was awarded the title of Merited Master of Sport of the USSR.[4] After retiring from competitions he worked at the Romanian Wrestling Federation. Martinescu died aged 73 in Bucharest.

His wife was folk singer Mioara Velicu.[5][6]

References

edit
  1. ^ a b Nicolae Martinescu. Romanian Olympic Committee
  2. ^ Romania. sports-reference.com
  3. ^ Martinescu, Nicolae (ROU). iat.uni-leipzig.de
  4. ^ Panorama of the 1972 Sports Year (in Russian). Moscow: Fizkultura i sport. 1973. pp. 122–124.
  5. ^ "Profile: Nicolae Martinescu". sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 10 February 2009.
  6. ^ Gabriela Niculescu (October 2010) Mioara Velicu: „Eram băieţoasă şi îi organizam pe toţi“. taifasuri.ro