Romanian swimmer David Popovici, double European and world champion this year, has been voted the best athlete of the Balkans in 2022, in a survey carried out by the Bulgarian news agency BTA with the help of the other news agencies in the region, including AGERPRES.
Popovici (18 years old), who won gold medals in the 100 and 200 m freestyle events, both at the European and World Championships this year, while also breaking the world record in the 100 m freestyle, has just won the 49th edition of the survey with 64 points, surpassing Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic, 61 points, and Croatian footballer Luka Modric, 48 points, Agerpres informs.
Djokovic, who emerged victorious in the BTA survey seven times before, won the Wimbledon title this year, as well as the Champions Tour.
Luka Modric, laureate of the BTA survey in 2018, won the Champions League and also the title of champion in Spain with Real Madrid, as well as the bronze medal with the Croatian national team in the World Cup in Qatar.
Ranking 13th, with 10 points, was Romanian rower Simona Radis, double European and World champion this year, while canoeist Catalin Chirila, European and World champion, ranked 33rd, with 3 points.
The list with the best performing athletes in 2022 also included rowers Ionela-Livia Cozmiuc, Sergiu Vasile Bejan, Marius Vasile Cozmiuc, weightlifter Loredana Toma, gymnasts Sabrina Voinea, Amalia Puflea, athlete Bianca Florentina Ghelber, wrestlers Nicu Ojog, Andreea Ana, cliff diver Constantin Popovici, boxers Lacramioara Perijoc and Andrei Aradoaie, all medalists at the European and/or World Championships.
Djokovic won last year's edition. Nicoleta-Ancuta Bodnar and Simona Radis, Olympic and European champions in women's double sculls in 2021, ranked 10th in the 2021 edition, with the other Romanians who reached the list being swimmer Robert Glinta, European champion, who ranked 27th, and swordswoman Ana-Maria Popescu, Olympic vice-champion and winner of the World Sword Cup, who ranked 31st.
The ranking that followed the survey "The best athletes of the Balkans in 2022," carried out by the BTA with the help of the other news agencies in the region, AGERPRES (Romania), AA (Turkey), ANA-MPA (Greece), ATA (Albania), FENA (Bosnia-Herzegovina), HINA (Croatia), MIA (North Macedonia), MINA (Montenegro) and TANJUG (Serbia) was:
1. David Popovici (Romania/swimming) 64 points
2. Novak Djokovic (Serbia/tennis) 61
3. Luka Modric (Croatia/football) 48
4. Miltiadis Tentoglou (Greece/athletics) 46
5. Tijana Boskovic (Serbia/volleyball) 31
6. Nikola Jokic (Serbia/basketball) 27
7. Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greece/basketball) 23
8. Aleksandr Vezenkov (Bulgaria/basketball) 21
9. Lana Pudar (Bosnia-Herzegovina/swimming) 20
9. Taha Akgul (Turkey/wrestling) 20
11. Sandra Perkovic (Croatia/athletics) 19
12. Riza Kayaalp (Turkey/fighting) 14
13. Buse Naz Cakiroglu (Turkey/boxing) 10
13. Ivana Spanovic-Vuleta (Serbia/athleticism) 10
13. Luiza Gega (Albania/athleticism) 10
13. Simona Radis (Romania/rowing) 10
13. Vladimir Egorov (North Macedonia/wrestling) 10
18. Jovanka Radicevic (Montenegro/handball) 9
19. Antigoni Drisbioti (Greece/athleticism) 8
19. Zelimkhan Abakarov (Albania/wrestling) 8
21. Busenaz Surmeneli (Turkey/boxing) 7
21. Elina Tzengko (Greece/athleticism) 7
21. Evagjelia Veli (Albania/weightlifting) 7
21. Jusuf Nurkic (Bosnia-Herzegovina/basketball) 7
21. Vasilije Micic (Serbia/basketball) 7
26. Adem Asil (Turkey/artistic gymnastics) 6
26. Islam Dudaev (Albania/wrestling) 6
28. Erkand Qerimaj (Albania/weightlifting) 5
28. Kiril Milov (Bulgaria/wrestling) 5
28. Marija Vukovic (Montenegro/athleticism) 5
31. Sevda Asenova (Bulgaria/boxing) 4
31. Stefan Ristovski (North Macedonia/football) 4
33. Catalin Chirila (Romania/rowing) 3
34. Lena Stojkovic (Croatia/taekwondo) 2
34. Marko Bijac (Croatia/polo) 2
34. Rade Krunic (Bosnia-Herzegovina/football) 2
37. Carlos Nassar (Bulgaria/weightlifting) 1
37. Yasemin Adar (Turkey/wrestling) 1
BTA survey: Romanian swimmer David Popovici voted the best athlete of the Balkans in 2022
Sursă foto: Inquam Photos / Octav Ganea
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