site.btaBulgaria Triumphs in First-Ever Special Olympics European Basketball Tournament

Bulgaria clinched the title in the first-ever Special Olympics European Unified Basketball Tournament featuring players with and without intellectual disabilities. The competition was held between October 13 and 16 in the Italian town of Sansepolcro. On its way to the top, the Special Olympics Bulgaria team defeated Special Olympics Serbia by 37:22, and two Italian sides – Special Olympics Italy (Team Muria) by 26:17 and Special Olympics Italy (Team Abruzzo) by 28:23.

A total of 240 athletes with and without intellectual disabilities, both male and female, competed in the tournament. They were divided into 24 teams and represented 16 countries: Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, Romania, Serbia and Spain.

Mariana Borukova, Associate Professor at the Vasil Levski National Sports Academy and basketball coach of the Special Olympics Bulgaria team, said: "The participation of the athletes of Special Olympics Bulgaria in this tournament is of great importance both for their sports development and social inclusion. Since the development of the Special Olympics Bulgaria basketball programme, we have had the opportunities to participate in 3x3 unified basketball tournaments. Here, we played 5x5 which was really important for the athletes’ self-confidence and motivation to continue to grow".

Special Olympics Bulgaria participated in the international event with ten players, six of which have intellectual disabilities.