Bulgarian taekwondo athlete Stanslav Mitkov was eliminated in the quarterfinals of the European Championships in Munich, Germany, in the men's 63 kg category. Mitkov, the world vice-champion for juniors under 21, was defeated by Omer Salim, the No. 2 seed and defending champion from Belgrade 2024, who is also a world champion from Guadalajara 2022 and a European champion from Sofia 2021 and Manchester 2022 in the lower 54 kg category.
Mitkov started strongly with a convincing 2-0 (17-1, 22-9) victory over Slovenian Ojbolot Mol, followed by another dominant 2-0 (17-2, 18-3) win over Croatian Jan Flegar in the second round. However, he was unable to overcome the 23-year-old Salim.
Yesterday, Erica Karabelova secured Bulgaria's first medal, winning a silver in the women's 53 kg category.
Three more Bulgarian athletes will compete on the final day of the championships. These are Aleksandra Georgieva (49 kg), Hristiyen Georgiev (54 kg), and Stefan Stamenov (74 kg).
Mitkov's loss is a huge blow to Bulgarian taekwondo. But we have to stay strong for the final day of competition. Can Bulgaria still pull off a surprise in the final rounds?