Bulgarian athletes won five titles and a total of 11 medals at the Balkan Athletics U20 Championships in Craiova, Romania, the Bulgarian Athletic Federation said on Saturday evening. The team’s haul consisted of five gold, three silver and three bronze medals.
Zinga Firmino opened Bulgaria’s account with a gold medal in the triple jump with a mark of 15.76 metres.
Radina Velichkova was the fastest in the 100 metres, clocking 11.73 seconds. In the heats, the European Under-18 doubles champion recorded 11.61 seconds.
Iva Deliverska triumphed in the 100 metres hurdles with a time of 13.80 seconds.
After achieving the qualifying standard for the World Athletics У20 Championships in Oregon, USA, in the heats, Yoan Kamenov won the 100 metres final in 10.49 seconds, followed by fellow Bulgarian international Deyan Tsvetanov in 10.54. Kamenov ran 10.47 seconds in the heats, securing his place at the premier event for his age group.
The Bulgarian 4×100 metres relay team produced a historic run. Dimitar Hristov, Yoan Kamenov, Zinga Firmino and Deyan Tsvetanov became champions in 40.50 seconds and improved the 40-year-old national record for this age category.
Hristiyan Kasabov earned the silver medal in the 110 metres hurdles with a time of 13.36 seconds. Other runners-up in their respective events were Deyan Tsvetanov in the 100 metres and Zara Ilieva in the 3,000 metres with 9:48.56 minutes.
Bronze medals were won by Stefani Dimitrova in the discus throw with 41.54 metres, Teodor Yankov in the long jump with 7.35 metres, and Siyana Brambarova in the long jump with 6.15 metres.
Bulgaria was represented by a record-sized delegation of more than 50 people at the championships in Craiova.
Bulgaria finished second in the final medal standings, behind only Greece. In addition, the national team achieved several fourth-place finishes and top-six placings, once again establishing themselves as one of the strongest teams in this age group – an age group whose development is receiving tremendous attention from the Bulgarian Athletic Federation, as these athletes are among those on whom Bulgaria will rely in the years ahead.
The Bulgarian Athletic Federation remains committed to finding ways for the best young athletes to receive monthly financial support so that they can be more secure, more motivated and remain in the sport, the press release noted.
