Bulgaria recorded an emotional and laurels-decorated Olympic games this year with a total of 12 medals - two Gold, a Silver and nine Bronze, occupying 20th place in the final medal count list of all participating countries.

The country's Gold winners in Athens 2004 are Maria Grozdeva - shooting, 25 m pistol, and Milen Dobrev - weightlifting, 94 kg weight class. Grozdeva, who was the official delegation's standard-bearer, swept also the first medal, Bronze, for Bulgaria in Athens in the 10m air shooting.

The Silver in gymnastics was more an insult than an award for Jordan Jovtchev, the artistic gymnastics, who was stripped of his deserved place on behalf of host's Dimostenis Tampakos at the rings. Jovtchev, who was welcomed back in Bulgaria as the real championship, won also the Bronze in the floor event.

The rest of Bulgaria's Bronze medallists are Rumyana Neykova - rowing, single sculls, Ivo Yanakiev - rowing, single sculls, Georgi Georgiev - judo, 66 kg class, Velichko Cholakov - weightlifting, +105 kg weight class, Boris Georgiev - boxing, 64 kg weight class, Armen Nazarian - Greco-Roman wrestling, 60 kg weight class, rhythmic gymnastic Group (Zhanet Ilieva, Eleonora Kezhova, Zornitsa Marinova, Kristina Rangelova and Galina and Vladislava Tancheva).

After 15 days of Olympic games, the United States topped the countries' medal count with 34 golds and 100 medals in total. China is second with 31 golds, Russia is third with 23.

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