Today’s European Taekwondo Championships for men and women brought another reason to celebrate for Bulgarian taekwondo. Christian Georgiev, competing in the under 54 kg category, secured a bronze medal. Georgiev, ranked number one in the main draw, started with a decisive victory over a Croatian opponent. In the quarterfinals, Georgiev demonstrated incredible character. After winning the first round, he faced a 30-set deficit in the second round, with only seconds remaining. However, he found the strength for a few unique strikes, overturning the match against Polish opponent Antoni Sokolowski and advancing to the semifinals. There, he faced Italian Gaetano Ciriveto. After an unsuccessful first round, he was on par in the second, but unfortunately, he did not secure victory in the final seconds, earning the bronze medal. This all occurred under the watchful eye of former IOC President Thomas Bach, a special guest at the European Championships.

Alexandra Georgieva, in the women's under 49 kg category, placed fifth. Despite a successful start against Azeri opponent Samarukh Osmanova, she lost the medal battle to Spanish competitor Adriana Cerezuelo due to controversial judge decisions. She remained at fifth place.

Another Bulgarian competitor, Stefan Stamnov, in the under 74 kg category, started with a win over a Swedish opponent with no issues. In the second round, he faced Serbian Stefan Takov but, despite a good game, he could not overcome him.

This European Championship turned out to be the most successful for Bulgaria in the history of the sport, with the acquisition of two medals. Additionally, Bulgaria secured two fifth-place finishes with Alexandra Georgieva and Stanislav Mitkov. Coaches Farzad Zolhadi and Venetsislav Sokolov have contributed to the success of the Bulgarian taekwondo team, both in the national team and in clubs.

The entire Bulgarian delegation, led by President Slavi Binov, along with medalists Erica Karabeleva and Christian Georgiev, and other participants, will return on May 15 at 12:10 to Sofia Airport from Munich.