Emil Stoynev and Yoana Valkanova triumphed again, with records in the 100-kilometer Vitosha Cycling Tour, the organizers announced.
Stoynev duplicated his success from 3 years ago, and with his result now of 3:46.56, he improved by nearly nine minutes the previous top achievement of Alexander Alexiev from 2019. In today's race, he took the lead right after the start and at 32 km he led by a minute ahead of Borislav Hadzhistoyanov and Lachezar Angelov. Halfway through the course, the leader's lead was already 2 minutes, and ten kilometers before the end, it was 4 minutes, and this championship pace helped break the record. Hadzhistoyanov finished second in 3:51.29, a result also below the previous best, and the bronze went to Lachezar Angelov with 3:56.32. Before 2022, Stoynev was the runner-up three times, and last summer he came third.
In the women's race, Yoana Valkanova continues to amaze with her phenomenal achievements. After being the runner-up in 2020 at the age of 12 and becoming the youngest to win the race the following summer at the age of 13, she has now won her third gold medal before turning 18. The teenager defended her title by finishing in a record 5:03.52. and thus improved by 36 seconds her own top achievement from last summer. Valkanova started strongly at the beginning and after the first third she led by 5 minutes. Then, the pursuing Hristina Katsipidou increased her pace and melted the lead to reach a 2-minute gap at 75 km, but her strength was there. In the final kilometers, Valkanova proved to be fresher and grabbed the victory with a new course record, despite finishing with a flat tire.
The silver went to Katsipidou with 5:07.30, and the bronze to Teodora Tabakova with 5:26.55.
The Tour of Vitosha is being held this summer for the 42nd time. The start of the cyclists was given at exactly 6 am by Anna Pencheva, who is the main driving force in the organization of one of the most popular and mass-participant events in our country. Then the column of 1800 cyclists set off up towards Boyana along the 100-kilometer route around Vitosha. Nearly 3000 are the total participants (cyclists and runners) in the emblematic race, which this time is also part of the initiative "Sofia - European Capital of Sport".
You can greet the winners during the cyclists' award ceremony, which is scheduled for today at 16:00 in the start/finish area of the parking lot in front of the "Boyana" residence next to the entrance to the BFU base, from where the runners will also set off tonight, at exactly 23:59. The weather forecast is for clear skies and calm weather, which will help the ambitious ones to improve their records Maria Nikolova - the first woman to finish under 9 hours, and Hristo Tsvetkov, the first to run around the mountain under 8 hours. The course records for runners are as follows: men Hristo Tsvetkov - 7:39.54 h. from 2023 and women Maria Nikolova - 8:56.39 h. from 2024.
The performances of the "gladiators" in the duathlon are also eagerly awaited, who today cycle around the mountain and tomorrow will run 100 km. Their record holders are: Andrian Karparov - 13:14.24 h. (4:47.05. and 9:13.57) from 2024 and Lili Angelova - 16:25.34 h. (5:39.41 and 10:45.57) from 2019. The champion will be announced at noon on Sunday.
The organizers remind participants that they should be well-equipped and have their mobile phones charged. The best runners are expected to finish around 7:30 a.m. on Sunday morning.
The event has once again been declared a "garbage-free race", which is why participants are invited to bring their own water bottles, not use single-use plastic cups and pick up their waste during and after the race. This summer, volunteers are helping to achieve this goal. In the start/finish area, the organizers have prepared sets where participants can relax, and 12 refreshment and support points have been built along the route. This year, the management of Vitosha Nature Park has given permission for the Vitosha Tour route to be "adopted", which means that the markings and signs are maintained and used by all who wish, year-round.