Tervel Zamfirov returned to Bulgaria a day after winning the country’s first Winter Olympic medal in two decades, a bronze in the parallel giant slalom snowboarding event. The 20-year-old secured third place after a dramatic photo finish in the small final, where he edged out Slovenia’s Tim Mastnak.

The snowboarder was welcomed at Sofia’s Vasil Levski Airport by Minister of Youth and Sports Ivan Peshev. Alongside Zamfirov, Radoslav Yankov and Malena Zamfirova also arrived, both having recorded strong performances at the Games and reaching the round of 16 in their respective events.

Addressing the media, Minister Peshev described Zamfirov’s achievement as historic, noting that Bulgaria had waited more than 20 years for another Winter Olympic medal. He emphasized the effort invested by both the athlete and the federation and said the success had once again united Bulgarians and given them a reason for pride. Peshev expressed hope that future governments would continue supporting Bulgarian sport with greater funding and said he remained optimistic ahead of the upcoming competitions involving Vladimir Zografski and the national biathlon team.

Zamfirov later shared his own reflections, saying that winning an Olympic medal had fulfilled his biggest sporting dream and that everything from now on felt like a bonus. He thanked the public for the warm welcome and said he felt only positive emotions after returning home. According to him, Bulgarian athletes receive strong institutional support, which he described as among the best compared to other federations.

He added that if he remains healthy, he hopes to compete until his mid-40s, potentially participating in five more Olympic Games. Zamfirov said the competition itself had been excellent, helped by sunny conditions, and expressed hope that snowboarding would remain part of the Olympic program in the future. Reflecting on the decisive run, he joked that genetics may have played a role, pointing to his longer arms. He admitted he initially thought he had finished fourth, saying it would have been more painful to believe he was third only to miss the podium.

For now, Zamfirov ruled out switching sports and said his focus would remain on snowboarding. His immediate plans include a short break, a microbiology exam, university commitments and four upcoming World Cup starts. He also noted the strong reaction from his academic environment, adding with humor that his sister Malena was so emotional after his race that he could barely understand her.

Meanwhile, Bulgaria’s leading ski jumper Vladimir Zografski expressed deep disappointment after being eliminated in the qualification round on the small hill in Predazzo at the Milano-Cortina 2026 Games. The 32-year-old finished 32nd in his first jump, missing the top 30 required to advance. An hour earlier, during a trial jump of 95 meters, he placed 33rd and was visibly frustrated after landing.

Zografski had shown much stronger form in training, twice clearing the 100-meter mark, but was unable to replicate those results in competition. He described his Olympic performance as the weakest of the season, despite feeling physically prepared. According to him, psychological pressure may have played a role, although he stressed that the responsibility lay entirely with himself. He pointed out that conditions were excellent and better than during training sessions.

He explained that technical issues with symmetry during both the trial and competition jump cost him significant distance. Although similar problems had appeared in training, they had seemed resolved before the event. Zografski said it was particularly painful that his weakest jumps came precisely at the Olympic Games. Despite the setback, he said he felt in good shape overall and hoped to regroup ahead of the large hill competition scheduled for February 14, approaching it with a calmer mindset.

On the fourth competition day of the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, seven Bulgarian athletes are set to compete. Kalina Nedyalkova is due to make her Olympic debut in the women’s sprint qualification in classic cross-country skiing after 10:15, followed by Mario Matikanov and Daniel Peshkov in the men’s event after 10:55. Later in the day, biathletes Konstantin Vassilev, Vladimir Iliev, Blagoy Todev and Anton Sinapov are scheduled to start in the 20-kilometer individual race.

In addition to events with Bulgarian participation, six sets of medals are to be decided, including women’s team combined alpine skiing, men’s slopestyle freestyle skiing, mixed team short track speed skating, mixed team curling, women’s single luge and mixed team ski jumping. The daily program also features competitions in ice hockey, figure skating and freestyle skiing.

After three competition days, Norway leads the medal standings with three gold medals and six total awards. Switzerland ranks second with three golds, followed by Japan with two. Bulgaria, with Zamfirov’s bronze in alpine snowboarding, ranks in 18th place.