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The BTA Best Balkan Athlete of the Year, or simply Balkan Athlete of the Year (Bulgarian: БТА спортист на Балканите, romanized: BTA sportist na Balkanite) is an annual sports athlete of the year award. The winner of each year's award is announced by the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency (BTA). The award is given to the year's top performing individual athlete that has citizenship from one of the nations of the Balkans region, which includes the twelve nations of: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, and Turkey, and previously included the former nations of Yugoslavia and Serbia and Montenegro. The award winners are chosen by the votes of a panel of sports journalists and editors from the following ten Balkan nation's news media outlets: the Albanian Telegraphic Agency (ATA), the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency (BTA), which also announces each year's winners, the Romanian AGERPRES, the Greek Athens-Macedonian News Agency (ANA-MPA), the Turkish Anatolian Agency (AA), the Croatian News Agency (HINA), the Bosnia and Herzegovina Federal News Agency (FENA), the North Macedonia Media Information Agency (MIA), the Montenegrin News Agency (MINA), and the Serbian TANYUG Correct.

Quick Facts Awarded for, Country ...
BTA Best Balkan Athlete of the Year
Awarded forBest Balkan Athlete
CountryThe Balkans: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Serbia and Montenegro (previously), Slovenia, Turkey, Yugoslavia (previously)
Presented byBulgarian Telegraph Agency (BTA)
First awarded1973
Most awardsSerbia Novak Djokovic (8×)
Websitewww.bta.bg/en
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All athletes that have citizenship from a country that is a part of the Balkans region, both men's and women's, and that compete in all age categories and all levels of competition, are eligible for the award. Balkan athletes from all sports competitions, both individual sports and team sports, are eligible for the award. Balkan athletes are also eligible for the award regardless of what country in the world that they compete in, as they do not have to compete in a Balkans nation to be eligible to win the award.

The first Balkan Athlete of the Year award was given for the year 1973. It was won by Svetla Zlateva, a Bulgarian sprinter and middle-distance runner. The Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic, has won the most awards, having won the award a total of eight times (2011–2015, 2019, 2021, 2023).[1]

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Balkan Athlete of the Year award winners (1973–present)

More information Year, Athlete ...
Year Athlete Sport Awards, honors, and achievements in Year Won Ref.
1973
Bulgaria Svetla Zlateva
1974
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Mate Parlov
1975
Romania Nadia Comăneci
1976
Romania Nadia Comăneci (2×)
1977
Bulgaria Totka Petrova
1978
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Miloš Srejović
1979
Bulgaria Yanko Rusev
1980
Romania Nadia Comăneci (3×)
1981
Bulgaria Antoaneta Todorova
1982
Bulgaria Blagoi Blagoev
1983
Bulgaria Diliana Georgieva
1984
Bulgaria Lyudmila Andonova
1985
Bulgaria Stefka Kostadinova
1986
Bulgaria Yordanka Donkova
1987
Bulgaria Stefka Kostadinova (2×)
1988
Romania Daniela Silivaș
1989
Romania Paula Ivan
1990
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Monica Seles
1991
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Monica Seles (2×)
1992
Greece Voula Patoulidou
1993
Bulgaria Ivan Ivanov
1994
Bulgaria Hristo Stoichkov
1995
Bulgaria Stefka Kostadinova (3×)
1996
Bulgaria Stefka Kostadinova (4×)
1997
Bulgaria Stefka Kostadinova (5×)
1998
Bulgaria Ekaterina Dafovska
1999
Romania Gabriela Szabo
2000
Greece Kostas Kenteris
2001
Greece Kostas Kenteris (2×)
2002
Bulgaria Georgi Markov
2003
Bulgaria Yordan Yovchev
2004
Bulgaria Maria Grozdeva
2005
Romania Marian Drăgulescu
2006
Bulgaria Vanya Stambolova
2007
Bulgaria Rumyana Neykova
2008
Romania Constantina Tomescu
2009
Greece Vassilis Spanoulis
2010
Bulgaria Stanka Zlateva
2011
Serbia Novak Djokovic
2012
Serbia Novak Djokovic (2×)
2013
Serbia Novak Djokovic (3×)
2014
Serbia Novak Djokovic (4×)
2015
Serbia Novak Djokovic (5×)
2016
Croatia Sandra Perković
2017
Bulgaria Grigor Dimitrov
2018
Croatia Luka Modrić
2019
Serbia Novak Djokovic (6×)
2020
Cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
2021
Serbia Novak Djokovic (7×)
2022
Romania David Popovici
2023
Serbia Novak Djokovic (8×)
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References

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