Bulgarian hopes in alpine snowboarding at the Olympics in Italy

The Bulgarian athletes with the most medals in winter sports are in snowboarding and the country’s hopes for an Olympic medal are linked with them. For the first time, Bulgaria will be represented at such a high level by four athletes. Radoslav Yankov, Tervel Zamfirov and Malena Zamfirova and Alexander Krashniak will compete in Milan – Cortina d’Ampezzo.

The serious and purposeful work of the Bulgarian Ski Federation has contributed to the good results in snowboarding in recent years. Georgi Atanasov, who is coach of the biggest Bulgarian star in winter sports - Radoslav Yankov, has created a young team that is already reaping its first successes.

The only Bulgarian to have won the Big Crystal Globe is Radoslav Yankov. Born in the winter resort of Chepelare to a family of ski instructors, he did not have much choice in his life path, so when he was a child he became involved in skiing and later in snowboarding. In 2015, in Carezza, he had a podium finish in the World Cup and became the first Bulgarian with such an achievement. Just a year later, he held the Big Crystal Globe in the parallel disciplines in his hands, and in 2017 – the small one, in the parallel giant slalom.

Radoslav Yankov participated in the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Pyeongchang and Beijing and in the Chinese capital achieved his best result at such a forum – 15th place in the parallel giant slalom and a personal time record. At the World Cup in Bansko in early 2026, he won a bronze medal in the parallel giant slalom and sincerely applauded young Tervel Zamfirov, who won against him in the semi-finals and climbed to the highest step of the podium.

"Since I won the Big Crystal Globe, my mission has always been to engage more young people in sports and to help them. We are currently reaping the fruits of a ten-year work of the federation, parents, coaches, activists, children and everyone who is in this thing with their strength and efforts. I am glad that we already have such a great team," Radoslav Yankov commented.

The snowboarder is happy that he is not going to the Olympic Games alone and he has repeatedly stated that his goal is a gold medal.

"Tervel Zamfirov and Malena Zamfirova are a very interesting family ‘product’ that we have not had at such a high level in winter sports," says sports journalist Kamen Alipiev. Tervel is the only Bulgarian with a world title in snow sports and the sister won her first podium in the women's category when she was just 16 years old and continues to perform well in the new World Cup season.

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Tervel Zamfirov won the gold medal in the men's parallel slalom at the 2025 FIS Snowboard World Championships in St. Moritz. Before that, he became a four-time world champion for youth under 21 in the parallel giant slalom in Bansko and in Zakopane. He defines the recent triumph at the World Cup in Bansko as a major event. "This is a historic result for Bulgaria with two competitors on the podium and a victory on home soil," he adds, making an emotional admission: "When I think about the Olympic Games, I tremble."

In 2025, Malena Zamfirova received the European Olympic Committees Grand Prize for Best Young Athlete. Another award followed thanks to fans from all over the world – the virtual FIS Snowboarding World Cup on Instagram, winning against Ramona Hofmeister, winner of an Olympic medal and two world championships.

Alexander Krashniak won his Olympic quota a month before the start in Italy. The young hope of Bulgarian sports started 2026 strongly, taking second place in the parallel giant slalom of the European Cup in Alpine Snowboarding in Folgaria. He also became second at the European Cup in Bansko. Earlier, he managed to win the bronze medal at the Winter Universiade in Turin and the European Cup in Götschen.
The presence of Alexander Krashniak in the national team is no coincidence, if we trust genetics. In 1899, his great-grandfather Mikhail Krashniak arrived in Bulgaria to work for Tsar Ferdinand and became one of the pioneers of skiing in the country. The passion for winter sports was passed down to the next generations and reached Alexander, who stepped on skis at an early age. Five years ago, he chose to focus on snowboarding, and his decision took him to the elite of this sport.

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