Hristo Iliev (sprinter)
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | 3 January 2005 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Athletics | ||||||||||||||||||||
Event | Sprint | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal bests | 60m: 6.51 (2026) NR AU23R 100m: 10.29 (2025) 200m: 21.08 (2025) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||||||
Hristo Iliev (born 3 January 2005) is a Bulgarian sprinter. He is a multiple-time national champion over 100 metres. Competing over 60 metres, he won the Balkan Indoor Championships in 2026, setting a new Bulgarian national record and European U23 record.[1]
Career
Iliev is coached by the renowned Bulgarian trainer Valya Demireva.[2] He won the Bulgarian Athletics Championships over 100 metres in June 2024.[3] That year, he was a semi-finalist over 100 metres and 200 metres at the 2024 World Athletics U20 Championships in Lima, Peru.[4][5]
He competed at the 2025 European Athletics Indoor Championships in Apeldoorn, Netherlands, in March 2025, without advancing to the semi-finals.[6] In July 2025, he was a semi-finalist at the 2025 European Athletics U23 Championships in Bergen, Norway over 100 metres.[7] That month, he placed third in the 100 metres at the 2025 Balkan Athletics Championships in Volos.[8] He retained his 100 metres title at the Bulgarian Championships in August 2025.[9]
In February 2026, he set a Bulgarian national record in the 60 metres with a time of 6.54 seconds at the Belgrade Indoor Meeting, part of the World Athletics Indoor Tour, improving the long-standing national record set by Petar Petrov in 1978 by four hundredths of a seconds and going below the automatic standard for the upcoming Indoor World Championships.[10] Later that month, on the same track in Belgrade, he won the 60 metres title at the Balkan Athletics Indoor Championships with a new national record time of 6.53 seconds, which also set a new European under-23 record, and broke the championship record of Aggelos Pavlakakis from 2000.[11][12][13]
Competing at the Bulgarian Indoor Championships in Sofia on 1 March 2026, he lowered his national record for the 60 metres to 6.51 seconds to tie the European lead for the event.[14]
References
- ^ "Hristo Iliev". World Athletics. Retrieved 25 Feb 2026.
- ^ "21-year-old Hristo Iliev rockets to No. 4 on Bulgaria's all-time 60m list". bnrnews.bg. 9 February 2026. Retrieved 25 Feb 2026.
- ^ "Bulgarian Championships". World Athletics. 29 June 2024. Retrieved 25 Feb 2026.
- ^ "World Athletics U20 Championships". World Athletics. 27 August 2024. Retrieved 25 Feb 2026.
- ^ "World Athletics U20 Championships". World Athletics. 30 August 2024. Retrieved 25 Feb 2026.
- ^ "European Athletics Indoor Championships". World Athletics. 6 March 2025. Retrieved 25 Feb 2026.
- ^ "European Athletics U23 Championships". World Athletics. 17 July 2025. Retrieved 25 Feb 2026.
- ^ "Balkan Championships". World Athletics. 26 July 2025. Retrieved 25 Feb 2026.
- ^ "Bulgarian Championships". World Athletics. 2 August 2025. Retrieved 25 Feb 2026.
- ^ "Two national records for Bulgaria at Belgrade indoor athletics event". bnrnews.bg. 12 Feb 2026. Retrieved 25 Feb 2026.
- ^ Mills, Steven (22 Feb 2026). "Another excellent series for Saraboyukov at the Balkan Indoor Championships". European Athletics. Retrieved 25 Feb 2026.
- ^ "Hristo Iliev is the fastest man in the Balkans in the 60-meter dash". bnrnews.bg. 23 Feb 2026. Retrieved 25 Feb 2026.
- ^ "Youngster duo reminded golden times". Athletics Podium. 21 Feb 2026. Retrieved 25 Feb 2026.
- ^ Mills, Steven (1 Mar 2026). "Saraboyukov's incredible treble! Three titles at the Bulgarian Indoor Championships". European Athletics. Retrieved 2 March 2026.