Sport in Bulgaria
Encyclopedia
Bulgaria
has established traditions in great variety of sports.
teams in Europe and the world. the team held 4th place in the world according to FIVB rankings. Bulgaria has regularly featured in the Top 10, and has earned silver medal
s at the 1980 Summer Olympics
, the 1970 Volleyball World Championship
and the 1951 European Championship
, as well as numerous bronze medals, including at the 2007 World Cup in Japan. the most popular Bulgarian volleyball players include Plamen Konstantinov
, Matey Kaziyski
and Vladimir Nikolov
.
achieved its greatest success with a fourth-place finish at the 1994 FIFA World Cup
in the United States.
Dimitar Berbatov
(Димитър Бербатов) ranks as one of the most famous Bulgarian football players. Currently he plays for Manchester United, where he scored his first two goals for the team in their 3–0 win away to Aalborg in the Champions League group stage
on 30 September 2008, less than a month after he joined the team. Georgi Asparuhov
, nicknamed Gundi (1943–1971), also became extremely popular at home and abroad, having had offers from clubs in Italy and Portugal, and having won the Bulgarian football player №1 award for the twentieth century. Hristo Stoichkov
has arguably become the best-known Bulgarian footballer of all time. His career peaked between 1992 and 1995, while he played for FC Barcelona
, winning the Ballon d'Or
in 1994. Additionally, he featured in the FIFA 100
rankings. Three Bulgarians have won the European top scorers' Golden Boot award: Hristo Stoichkov
, Georgi Slavkov
and Petar Jekov.
CSKA Sofia
is the best-performing Bulgarian football club based on all-time national and international statistics. Levski Sofia
became the first Bulgarian team to participate in the modern UEFA Champions League
in 2006/2007. Slavia Sofia
, Lokomotiv Sofia
and Litex Lovech
have often played in the UEFA Europa League. Other popular clubs include Botev Plovdiv
, Cherno More Varna
and Lokomotiv Plovdiv
.
Bulgaria participates both in the Summer and Winter Olympics, and its first appearance dates back to the first modern Olympic Games
in 1896, when the Swiss gymnast Charles Champaud
represented the country. Since then Bulgaria has appeared in most Summer Olympiads, and has won a total of 212 medals: 51 gold, 84 silver, and 77 bronze. The most successful participations took place at Munich
(21 medals), Montreal
(22 medals), Moscow
(41), Seoul
(35). At the Winter Olympic Games, Bulgaria has a less impressive record: only 6 medals (of which only one gold) out of 17 participations.
Some of the most prominent Olympians include Mariya Grozdeva (shooting), Ekaterina Dafovska
(biathlon), Armen Nazaryan (wrestling), Stefka Kostadinova
(high jump, holder of the world record since 1987), Yordan Yovchev (gymnastics), Neshka Robeva
(gymnastics), Rumyana Neykova
(rowing).
Weightlifting is the most successful discipline. Bulgarian weightlifters have earned a total of 67 medals - 16 gold, 37 silver and 20 bronze. Without doubt this is one of Bulgaria's highest priority sports with around 1,000 gold medals in different competitions, although cases of doping
have occurred among Bulgarian weightlifters, which led to the expulsion of the entire Bulgarian team from the 2000 Summer Olympics
, and their voluntary withdrawal from the 1988 Summer Olympics
.
Stefan Botev
, Nikolay Peshalov, Demir Demirev
and Yoto Yotov
figure among the most distinguished weightlifters.
Shooting sports
have also proven to be among Bulgaria's strongest disciplines. Mariya Grozdeva and Tanyu Kiryakov
have won Olympic gold medals, and Ekaterina Dafovska
won the Olympic gold in biathlon
in the 1998 Winter Olympic Games.
and Maria Petrova
have each held a record of three world-titles in rhythmic gymnastics
. Other famous gymnasts include Simona Peycheva
and Neshka Robeva
(a highly successful coach as well). Yordan Yovchev ranks as the most famous Bulgarian competitor in Artistic Gymnastics
. In wrestling
, Boyan Radev
, Serafim Barzakov
, Armen Nazarian
, Plamen Slavov, Kiril Sirakov and Sergey Moreyko rank as world-class wrestlers. Dan Kolov
became a wrestling legend in the early 20th century after leaving for United States.
Bulgarians have made many significant achievements in athletics. Stefka Kostadinova
, who still holds the women's high jump
world record, jumped 209 centimetres at the 1987 World Championships in Athletics
in Rome to clinch the coveted title. , Bulgaria takes pride in its sprinters, especially Ivet Lalova
and Tezdzhan Naimova
.
Chess
has achieved great popularity. One of the top chess-masters and a former world champion, Veselin Topalov
, plays for Bulgaria. At the end of 2005, both men's and women's world chess-champions came from Bulgaria, as well as the junior world champion.
Albena Denkova
and Maxim Staviski
have won the ISU world figure skating championships twice in a row (2006 and 2007) for ice-dance.
Bulgarians have also achieved major successes in tennis
. The Maleeva sisters: Katerina, Manuela and Magdalena, have each reached the top ten in world rankings, and became the only set of three sisters ranked in the top ten at the same time. Bulgaria has other well-known tennis players such as Tsvetana Pironkova
, Sesil Karatancheva and Grigor Dimitrov
, who in 2008 became the Wimbledon junior champion and US Open junior champion.
Petar Stoychev
(Петър Стойчев) set a new swimming world record for crossing the English Channel
in 2007.
The country has strong traditions in amateur boxing
and in martial-arts
competitions. Bulgaria has achieved major success with its judo
and karate
teams in European and World championships. Kaloyan Stefanov Mahlyanov, best known as Kotoōshū Katsunori
, has become well-known worldwide for his sumo
prowess, becoming the first European to earn the title ozeki in Japan. Bulgaria has also won several European sumo championships, and is often among the top competitors in this sport.
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
has established traditions in great variety of sports.
Volleyball
In its men's national volleyball side, controlled by the Bulgarian Volleyball Federation, Bulgaria fields one of the leading volleyballVolleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
teams in Europe and the world. the team held 4th place in the world according to FIVB rankings. Bulgaria has regularly featured in the Top 10, and has earned silver medal
Silver medal
A silver medal is a medal awarded to the second place finisher of contests such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, and contests with similar formats....
s at the 1980 Summer Olympics
1980 Summer Olympics
The 1980 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event celebrated in Moscow in the Soviet Union. In addition, the yachting events were held in Tallinn, and some of the preliminary matches and the quarter-finals of the football tournament...
, the 1970 Volleyball World Championship
Volleyball World Championship
The FIVB World Championship is an international men's and women's indoor volleyball competition. It is the oldest and most important of all the international events organized by the FIVB and must not be confused with the FIVB World Cup or the FIVB World League/FIVB World Grand Prix.-Origins:The...
and the 1951 European Championship
European Volleyball Championship
The European Volleyball Championship is a sport competition for national teams, currently held biannually and organized by the CEV, the European volleyball federation. There are both men's and women's competitions....
, as well as numerous bronze medals, including at the 2007 World Cup in Japan. the most popular Bulgarian volleyball players include Plamen Konstantinov
Plamen Konstantinov
Plamen Georgiev Konstantinov is a former Bulgarian volleyball player and captain of the Bulgaria men's national volleyball team,coach.Konstantinov was born in Sofia; both his parents, Georgi and Eva née Doycheva, are former volleyball internationals and his older brother Julian Konstantinov is an...
, Matey Kaziyski
Matey Kaziyski
Matey Kaziyski is a Bulgarian volleyball player.With Dynamo Moscow he won the bronze medal at the Men's CEV Champions League 2006–07 and was awarded Final Four' "Best Server"....
and Vladimir Nikolov
Vladimir Nikolov
Vladimir Nikolov is a Bulgarian volleyball player, current captain of the his country's national team. He plays as a wing-spiker and has been part of the Bulgarian national team in all recent championships...
.
Association football
Association football has become by far the most popular sport in the country. Many Bulgarian fans closely follow the top Bulgarian league, the "A" Professional Football Group; as well as the leagues of other European countries. The national teamBulgaria national football team
The FIFA Bulgaria national football team is an association football team fielded by the Bulgarian Football Union, a member association of UEFA. The team's home ground is Vasil Levski in Sofia and Luboslav Penev is in charge manager after replacement of Lothar Matthäus...
achieved its greatest success with a fourth-place finish at the 1994 FIFA World Cup
1994 FIFA World Cup
The 1994 FIFA World Cup, the 15th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in nine cities across the United States from June 17 to July 17, 1994. The United States was chosen as the host by FIFA on July 4, 1988...
in the United States.
Dimitar Berbatov
Dimitar Berbatov
Dimitar Ivanov Berbatov is a Bulgarian footballer who plays as a forward for Manchester United. He captained the Bulgarian national team from 2006 to 2010, and is its all-time leading goalscorer and has also won the Bulgarian Footballer of the Year a record seven times, surpassing the number of...
(Димитър Бербатов) ranks as one of the most famous Bulgarian football players. Currently he plays for Manchester United, where he scored his first two goals for the team in their 3–0 win away to Aalborg in the Champions League group stage
UEFA Champions League 2008–09 group stage
The 2008–09 UEFA Champions League group stage matches took place between 16 September and 10 December 2008.-Seeding structure:Seeding was determined by the UEFA coefficients: Pot 1 held teams ranked 1–10 , Pot 2 held teams ranked 11–23, Pot 3 held teams ranked 25–45, while Pot 4 held teams ranked...
on 30 September 2008, less than a month after he joined the team. Georgi Asparuhov
Georgi Asparuhov
Georgi Rangelov Asparuhov , nicknamed Gundi was a Bulgarian football player. He is considered to be among the top Bulgarian footballers of all time....
, nicknamed Gundi (1943–1971), also became extremely popular at home and abroad, having had offers from clubs in Italy and Portugal, and having won the Bulgarian football player №1 award for the twentieth century. Hristo Stoichkov
Hristo Stoichkov
Hristo Stoichkov Stoichkov , sometimes Stoitchkov; born 8 February 1966 in Plovdiv) is a retired Bulgarian footballer. He is regarded as one of the best footballers of his generation and the greatest Bulgarian footballer of all time. Nicknamed The Dagger , The Dog , The Modern Left...
has arguably become the best-known Bulgarian footballer of all time. His career peaked between 1992 and 1995, while he played for FC Barcelona
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona , also known as Barcelona and familiarly as Barça, is a professional football club, based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain....
, winning the Ballon d'Or
European Footballer of the Year
The "", literally translated as "the golden ball" and often referred to as the European Footballer of the Year award, was an annual association football award. It was presented to the player who had been considered to have performed the best over the previous calendar year...
in 1994. Additionally, he featured in the FIFA 100
FIFA 100
The FIFA 100 is a list of the world-renowned Brazilian striker Pelé's choice of the "greatest living footballers". Unveiled on 4 March 2004 at a gala ceremony in London, the FIFA 100 marked part of the celebrations of the 100th anniversary of the foundation of the Fédération Internationale de...
rankings. Three Bulgarians have won the European top scorers' Golden Boot award: Hristo Stoichkov
Hristo Stoichkov
Hristo Stoichkov Stoichkov , sometimes Stoitchkov; born 8 February 1966 in Plovdiv) is a retired Bulgarian footballer. He is regarded as one of the best footballers of his generation and the greatest Bulgarian footballer of all time. Nicknamed The Dagger , The Dog , The Modern Left...
, Georgi Slavkov
Georgi Slavkov
Georgi Slavkov is a former Bulgarian football player.He scored 61 goals in 112 games for Botev Plovdiv between 1976 and 1982. In 1981 he won the France Football's Golden Boot award. With CSKA Sofia he played between 1982 and 1986, scoring 48 goals. Then he was transferred to the French club AS...
and Petar Jekov.
CSKA Sofia
PFC CSKA Sofia
PFC CSKA Sofia , commonly known as CSKA or CSKA Sofia is a professional football club based in Sofia, Bulgaria. The club was officially founded on May 5, 1948. CSKA's abbreviation stands for Central Sports Club of the Army...
is the best-performing Bulgarian football club based on all-time national and international statistics. Levski Sofia
PFC Levski Sofia
"Levski Sofia" redirects here. For the sports club, see Levski Sofia .PFC Levski Sofia, otherwise simply known as Levski or Levski Sofia, is a professional football club based in Sofia, Bulgaria...
became the first Bulgarian team to participate in the modern UEFA Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
in 2006/2007. Slavia Sofia
PFC Slavia Sofia
PFC Slavia Sofia is a Bulgarian football club founded on 10 April 1913 in Sofia. Slavia's ground is Slavia Stadium with a capacity of 15,992. The team's colours are white and black....
, Lokomotiv Sofia
PFC Lokomotiv Sofia
PFC Lokomotiv Sofia is a Bulgarian football club from the capital city of Sofia, which currently competes in Bulgaria's top football league, the A PFG. It was founded on September 2, 1929 by a group of railway workers under the name Railway Sports Club . The club's home ground is the Lokomotiv...
and Litex Lovech
PFC Litex Lovech
PFC Litex Lovech or simply Litex is a Bulgarian football club from the town of Lovech, which currently competes in the Bulgarian A Professional Football Group, the top division of Bulgarian football...
have often played in the UEFA Europa League. Other popular clubs include Botev Plovdiv
PFC Botev Plovdiv
PFC Botev Plovdiv , is the oldest Bulgarian football club from the city of Plovdiv, which currently competes in Bulgaria's second football league, the B PFG....
, Cherno More Varna
PFC Cherno More Varna
PFC Cherno More Varna , or simply Cherno More is a Bulgarian professional football club from the city of Varna, which currently competes in Bulgaria's top football league, the A PFG....
and Lokomotiv Plovdiv
PFC Lokomotiv Plovdiv
PFC Lokomotiv Plovdiv is a Bulgarian football club from the city of Plovdiv, which competes in Bulgaria's top football league, the A PFG. The club was founded on July 25, 1926 when two of the oldest Plovdiv clubs - Atletic and Karadzha united into a new club named Sports Club Plovdiv...
.
Rugby union
Rugby union in Bulgaria dates back to the 1960s, possibly earlier. Bulgaria also has its own international men, women's and sevens teams.Olympics
1896 Summer Olympics
The 1896 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the I Olympiad, was a multi-sport event celebrated in Athens, Greece, from April 6 to April 15, 1896. It was the first international Olympic Games held in the Modern era...
in 1896, when the Swiss gymnast Charles Champaud
Charles Champaud
Charles Champaud , Bulgarianized Charles Shampov , was a Swiss gymnast. He competed at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens.Champaud competed in the parallel bars, vault, and pommel horse events...
represented the country. Since then Bulgaria has appeared in most Summer Olympiads, and has won a total of 212 medals: 51 gold, 84 silver, and 77 bronze. The most successful participations took place at Munich
1972 Summer Olympics
The 1972 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from August 26 to September 11, 1972....
(21 medals), Montreal
1976 Summer Olympics
The 1976 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event celebrated in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in 1976. Montreal was awarded the rights to the 1976 Games on May 12, 1970, at the 69th IOC Session in Amsterdam, over the bids of Moscow and...
(22 medals), Moscow
1980 Summer Olympics
The 1980 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event celebrated in Moscow in the Soviet Union. In addition, the yachting events were held in Tallinn, and some of the preliminary matches and the quarter-finals of the football tournament...
(41), Seoul
1988 Summer Olympics
The 1988 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad, were an all international multi-sport events celebrated from September 17 to October 2, 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. They were the second summer Olympic Games to be held in Asia and the first since the 1964 Summer Olympics...
(35). At the Winter Olympic Games, Bulgaria has a less impressive record: only 6 medals (of which only one gold) out of 17 participations.
Some of the most prominent Olympians include Mariya Grozdeva (shooting), Ekaterina Dafovska
Ekaterina Dafovska
Ekaterina Dafovska is a Bulgarian biathlete. At the age of 15 years she signed up in the sports club of her hometown, where she went in for biathlon. She won a gold Olympic medal at the 15 km Individual event during the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano...
(biathlon), Armen Nazaryan (wrestling), Stefka Kostadinova
Stefka Kostadinova
Stefka Kostadinova is a Bulgarian retired athlete and the current women's world record holder in the high jump. She is the current president of the Bulgarian Olympic Committee.-Career:...
(high jump, holder of the world record since 1987), Yordan Yovchev (gymnastics), Neshka Robeva
Neshka Robeva
Neshka Robeva is a Bulgarian former Rhythmic Gymnast and coach.Born in Rousse, Robeva graduated from the Bulgarian State Choreography School in "Bulgarian Dances" in 1966 and since then had been a member of the Bulgarian national rhythmic gymnastics squad until 1973. She took part in four World...
(gymnastics), Rumyana Neykova
Rumyana Neykova
Rumyana Neykova is a Bulgarian rower. Neykova competed at the 1992 Summer Olympics, the 1996 Summer Olympics, the 2000 Summer Olympics, where she won silver in Single Sculls, the 2004 Summer Olympics, where she won bronze and the 2008 Summer Olympics, where she won gold in the same discipline. Her...
(rowing).
Weightlifting is the most successful discipline. Bulgarian weightlifters have earned a total of 67 medals - 16 gold, 37 silver and 20 bronze. Without doubt this is one of Bulgaria's highest priority sports with around 1,000 gold medals in different competitions, although cases of doping
Doping (sport)
The use of performance-enhancing drugs in sport is commonly referred to by the term "doping", particularly by those organizations that regulate competitions. The use of performance enhancing drugs is mostly done to improve athletic performance. This is why many sports ban the use of performance...
have occurred among Bulgarian weightlifters, which led to the expulsion of the entire Bulgarian team from the 2000 Summer Olympics
2000 Summer Olympics
The Sydney 2000 Summer Olympic Games or the Millennium Games/Games of the New Millennium, officially known as the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated between 15 September and 1 October 2000 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
, and their voluntary withdrawal from the 1988 Summer Olympics
1988 Summer Olympics
The 1988 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad, were an all international multi-sport events celebrated from September 17 to October 2, 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. They were the second summer Olympic Games to be held in Asia and the first since the 1964 Summer Olympics...
.
Stefan Botev
Stefan Botev
Stefan Khristov Botev was an Olympic weightlifter for Bulgaria and later for Australia. He was coached by Ivan Abajiev.In 2007 he was elected member of the International Weightlifting Federation Hall of Fame....
, Nikolay Peshalov, Demir Demirev
Demir Demirev
Demir Demirev is a Bulgarian weightlifter. He is of Turkish ethnicity. He participated in the men's -69 kg class at the 2006 World Weightlifting Championships and won the bronze medal, finishing behind Vencelas Dabaya and Shi Zhiyong...
and Yoto Yotov
Yoto Yotov
Yoto Vasilev Yotov is a Bulgarian/Croatian weightlifter.It can be said that Yotov has a great love for the sport, as he was still competing as recently as October 2006. He represented Croatia in the Men's 85 kg class...
figure among the most distinguished weightlifters.
Shooting sports
Shooting sports
A shooting sport is a competitive sport involving tests of proficiency using various types of guns such as firearms and airguns . Hunting is also a shooting sport, and indeed shooting live pigeons was an Olympic event...
have also proven to be among Bulgaria's strongest disciplines. Mariya Grozdeva and Tanyu Kiryakov
Tanyu Kiryakov
Tanyu Kiryakov is a Bulgarian pistol shooter, the only shooter to have won Olympic gold medals in both the 50 metre pistol event and the 10 metre air pistol event, in which he was also the first Olympic champion.- External links :*...
have won Olympic gold medals, and Ekaterina Dafovska
Ekaterina Dafovska
Ekaterina Dafovska is a Bulgarian biathlete. At the age of 15 years she signed up in the sports club of her hometown, where she went in for biathlon. She won a gold Olympic medal at the 15 km Individual event during the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano...
won the Olympic gold in biathlon
Biathlon
Biathlon is a term used to describe any sporting event made up of two disciplines. However, biathlon usually refers specifically to the winter sport that combines cross-country skiing and rifle shooting...
in the 1998 Winter Olympic Games.
Other sports
Bulgaria boasts great achievements in a great variety of other sports. Maria GigovaMaria Gigova
Maria Gigova is a Bulgarian rhythmic gymnast. She was the first gymnast to become a triple world champion in rhythmic gymnastics with her titles in 1969, 1971, and 1973...
and Maria Petrova
Maria Petrova (rhythmic gymnast)
Maria Petrova is a Bulgarian rhythmic gymnast. She shares the world record for the most individual world all-around rhythmic gymnastics titles of all time and has never placed lower than seventh in any competition in her entire career.-Career:Petrova began her training at the age of five at...
have each held a record of three world-titles in rhythmic gymnastics
Rhythmic gymnastics
Rhythmic gymnastics is a sport in which individuals or teams of competitors manipulate one or two pieces of apparatus: rope, clubs, hoop, ball, ribbon and Free . An individual athlete only manipulates 1 apparatus at a time...
. Other famous gymnasts include Simona Peycheva
Simona Peycheva
Simona Peycheva is an Individual Rhythmic Gymnast considered by many to be the best Bulgarian rhythmic gymnast of late for her extreme flexibility, technical brilliance and that she is a great audience teaser....
and Neshka Robeva
Neshka Robeva
Neshka Robeva is a Bulgarian former Rhythmic Gymnast and coach.Born in Rousse, Robeva graduated from the Bulgarian State Choreography School in "Bulgarian Dances" in 1966 and since then had been a member of the Bulgarian national rhythmic gymnastics squad until 1973. She took part in four World...
(a highly successful coach as well). Yordan Yovchev ranks as the most famous Bulgarian competitor in Artistic Gymnastics
Artistic gymnastics
Artistic gymnastics is a discipline of gymnastics where gymnasts perform short routines on different apparatus, with less time for vaulting . The sport is governed by the Federation Internationale de Gymnastique , which designs the Code of Points and regulates all aspects of international elite...
. In wrestling
Wrestling
Wrestling is a form of grappling type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. A wrestling bout is a physical competition, between two competitors or sparring partners, who attempt to gain and maintain a superior position...
, Boyan Radev
Boyan Radev
Boyan Radev is a former Greco Roman wrestler from Bulgaria.He is two-time Olympic Games champion and one-time champion of the world.-External links:*...
, Serafim Barzakov
Serafim Barzakov
Serafim Barzakov Serafim Barzakov Serafim Barzakov (born on July 22, 1975 in Kolarovo is a male freestyle wrestler from Bulgaria.He participated in Men's freestyle 66 kg at 2008 Summer Olympics, Men's freestyle 66 kg at 2004 Summer Olympics, Men's freestyle 63 kg at 2000 Summer Olympics and Men's...
, Armen Nazarian
Armen Nazarian
Armen Nazarian |Masis]], Armenian SSR, Soviet Union) is an Armenian/Bulgarian Greco Roman wrestler and a member of the FILA Hall of Fame....
, Plamen Slavov, Kiril Sirakov and Sergey Moreyko rank as world-class wrestlers. Dan Kolov
Dan Kolov
Dan Koloff , born Doncho Kolеv Danev , was a famous Bulgarian wrestler and a national hero of Bulgaria.-Early years:A very brave man...
became a wrestling legend in the early 20th century after leaving for United States.
Bulgarians have made many significant achievements in athletics. Stefka Kostadinova
Stefka Kostadinova
Stefka Kostadinova is a Bulgarian retired athlete and the current women's world record holder in the high jump. She is the current president of the Bulgarian Olympic Committee.-Career:...
, who still holds the women's high jump
High jump
The high jump is a track and field athletics event in which competitors must jump over a horizontal bar placed at measured heights without the aid of certain devices in its modern most practiced format; auxiliary weights and mounds have been used for assistance; rules have changed over the years....
world record, jumped 209 centimetres at the 1987 World Championships in Athletics
1987 World Championships in Athletics
The 2nd World Championships in Athletics under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations were held in the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, Italy between August 28 and September 6, 1987.-Track:1983 | 1987 | 1991 | 1993 | 1995...
in Rome to clinch the coveted title. , Bulgaria takes pride in its sprinters, especially Ivet Lalova
Ivet Lalova
Ivet Lalova is a Bulgarian athlete who specialises in the 100 metres and 200 metres sprint events. She is the tenth fastest woman in 100 metres history, the fastest white woman in the world, and finished fourth in the 100 metres and fifth in the 200 metres at the 2004 Summer Olympics. Her career...
and Tezdzhan Naimova
Tezdzhan Naimova
Tezdzhan Naimova is a Bulgarian sprinter. She specializes in both the 60, 100 and 200 metres.-Junior career:Born in Parvomay, Naimova took up athletics at the age of 10 and was initially trained by Tanyo Tanev, but changed to former triple jumper Stoyko Tsonov, who has been her coach since seventh...
.
Chess
Chess
Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
has achieved great popularity. One of the top chess-masters and a former world champion, Veselin Topalov
Veselin Topalov
Veselin Aleksandrov Topalov is a Bulgarian chess grandmaster. He currently has the sixth highest rating in the world, and was the challenger facing world champion Viswanathan Anand in the World Chess Championship 2010, losing the match 6½–5½....
, plays for Bulgaria. At the end of 2005, both men's and women's world chess-champions came from Bulgaria, as well as the junior world champion.
Albena Denkova
Albena Denkova
Albena Denkova is a Bulgarian ice dancer. With partner and fiance Maxim Staviski, she is the 2006 & 2007 World Champion, the 2003 & 2004 European silver medalist, and the 2006 Grand Prix Final champion...
and Maxim Staviski
Maxim Staviski
Maxim Staviski is a Bulgarian ice dancer. With partner and fiancée Albena Denkova, he is the 2006 & 2007 World Champion, the 2003 & 2004 European silver medalist, and the 2006 Grand Prix Final champion...
have won the ISU world figure skating championships twice in a row (2006 and 2007) for ice-dance.
Bulgarians have also achieved major successes in tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
. The Maleeva sisters: Katerina, Manuela and Magdalena, have each reached the top ten in world rankings, and became the only set of three sisters ranked in the top ten at the same time. Bulgaria has other well-known tennis players such as Tsvetana Pironkova
Tsvetana Pironkova
Tsvetana Kirilova Pironkova is a female Bulgarian tennis player. She was born and lives in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. Pironkova is right-handed and plays with a two-handed backhand....
, Sesil Karatancheva and Grigor Dimitrov
Grigor Dimitrov
Grigor Dimitrov is a tennis player from Bulgaria. He achieved a career high ranking of World No. 52 on August 22, 2011. Dimitrov also enjoyed a very successful junior career, in which he held the World No...
, who in 2008 became the Wimbledon junior champion and US Open junior champion.
Petar Stoychev
Petar Stoychev
Petar Stoychev is a Bulgarian swimmer who is the most successful long distance marathon swimmer of the last decade. He is one of the greatest marathon swimmers of all time and an honor swimmer in the...
(Петър Стойчев) set a new swimming world record for crossing the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
in 2007.
The country has strong traditions in amateur boxing
Amateur boxing
Amateur boxing is practised at the collegiate level, at the Olympic Games and Commonwealth Games, and in many other venues sponsored by amateur boxing associations. Amateur boxing bouts are short in duration and fighters wear head protection, so this type of competition prizes point-scoring rather...
and in martial-arts
Martial arts
Martial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....
competitions. Bulgaria has achieved major success with its judo
Judo
is a modern martial art and combat sport created in Japan in 1882 by Jigoro Kano. Its most prominent feature is its competitive element, where the object is to either throw or takedown one's opponent to the ground, immobilize or otherwise subdue one's opponent with a grappling maneuver, or force an...
and karate
Karate
is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Islands in what is now Okinawa, Japan. It was developed from indigenous fighting methods called and Chinese kenpō. Karate is a striking art using punching, kicking, knee and elbow strikes, and open-handed techniques such as knife-hands. Grappling, locks,...
teams in European and World championships. Kaloyan Stefanov Mahlyanov, best known as Kotoōshū Katsunori
Kotooshu Katsunori
Kotoōshū Katsunori is a professional sumo wrestler or rikishi. He made his debut in 2002, reaching the top division just two years later...
, has become well-known worldwide for his sumo
Sumo
is a competitive full-contact sport where a wrestler attempts to force another wrestler out of a circular ring or to touch the ground with anything other than the soles of the feet. The sport originated in Japan, the only country where it is practiced professionally...
prowess, becoming the first European to earn the title ozeki in Japan. Bulgaria has also won several European sumo championships, and is often among the top competitors in this sport.