 Owing to Vlad the flat-backed, semi-stiff legged barbell lift (with a form similar to a deadlift) came to be known as the Romanian deadlift.He was seen by some American lifters doing the deadlifts in the Olympic training hall prior to either winning a medal, setting a world record or both.Since he is Romanian, the exercise got dubbed the Romanian deadlift, and that is the name most people know the exercise by.