Bulgarian Junior Rhythmic Gymnasts Strike Gold

Jerusalem, 28 May, 2026 (TPS-IL) -- Varna on the Black Sea (BTA) – Bulgaria’s junior team won the title for the first time in history at the European Championships in Rhythmic Gymnastics in Varna. The event is being held from May 27 to 31.

Siyana Alekova, Aleksandra Petrova, and Dea Emilova won the country’s first gold medal from the 42nd edition of the championships.

The junior team competition has been held since 2006, initially every two years. Teams consist of two to four gymnasts. Since 2017, the team event has been part of the programme every year. To date, Bulgaria has won five bronze medals, but this is the first time it has been crowned champion of the Old Continent.

Alekova, Petrova, and Emilova scored 102.250 points to claim victory. Ukraine took second place with 100.550 points, and Israel came in third with 97.950. The rest of the standings include Georgia with 97.900, Russia with 96.950, Belarus with 96.550, Germany with 96.250.

The Bulgarian junior team, making their debut at such a competition, performed their routines very strongly. Only Aleksandra Petrova dropped the ball twice in her routine. She was the first of the three to perform and scored 22.950 points (difficulty 9.6, execution 6.450, artistry 6.900), which prevented her from advancing to the final.

After an excellent performance Dea Emilova scored 25.850 points on clubs (difficulty 10.5, execution 7.800, artistry 7.600, penalty 0.050), and 26.800 points on the ribbon (10.8, 8.100, 7.900).

Siyana Alekova performed her hoop routine strongly and got a score of 26.650 points (11.1, 7.850, 7.700).

A total of 43 countries participate in the championships, with 40 teams in the senior individuals and 40 teams in the junior individuals, featuring a total of 106 individual gymnasts and 26 groups.