Another great success for Bulgarian sport. Snowboarder Malena Zamfirova was selected among the five best young athletes in the 10th European Olympic Committees’ “Piotr Nurowski” awards.
Malena was nominated by the Executive Board of the Bulgarian Olympic Committee, together with representatives of the athletes. Representatives of all national Olympic committees, as well as a special expert commission, voted for the five best young athletes of the European Olympic Committees (EOC).
“I am happy that the BOC Executive Board decided to nominate our winter sports competitor, Malena Zamfirova. Her qualities, talent, and successes were recognized at the highest level and in competition with hundreds of elite athletes from all over Europe. This is recognition both for her and for her family, coaches, and the leadership of the federation,” said BOC President Vessela Letcheva, who today received a letter from the EOC with the names of the winners.
Malena Zamfirova will receive a special prize from the European Olympic Committees (EOC) during a ceremony in Malta on October 3, as well as a cash prize. It is in Malta, during the 45th EOC Seminar and Olympic Solidarity Forum, that the vote for the overall winner in winter sports will take place, but Malena has already secured her place among the best on the continent.
In alphabetical order, the winners selected by the European Olympic Committees are:
- Yaroslav LAVRENYUK (UKR), skeleton
- Unai LOPES SOUSA (ESP), snowboard
- Finn SONEKALB (GER), speed skating
- Flora TABANELLI (ITA), freestyle skiing
- Malena ZAMFIROVA, snowboarding
Malena Zamfirova caused a real sensation in snowboarding when, at only 15 years of age, she won second place at the World Cup in Krynica, Poland (March 2025), beating renowned champions along the way. Malena also won a gold medal at the World Junior Championships in Zakopane, Poland (March 2025) together with her brother Tervel, and the two were declared one of the sensations in world snowboarding.
The EOC’s Piotr Nurowski Award for Best Young Athlete is in memory of Piotr Nurowski, President of the Polish Olympic Committee, who died in a plane crash in Smolensk, Russia, which also claimed the life of the President of Poland. Nurowski was also a member of the Executive Committee of the European Olympic Committees (EOC). Since 2016, two awards have been presented annually – one for summer sports and one for winter sports. The winner receives a trophy and a training scholarship.
