site.btaBulgaria's National Field Hockey Team Wins Bronze at Special Olympics National Games in Netherlands

Bulgaria’s national field hockey team has won bronze at the Special Olympics National Games -  the largest sporting event for participants with intellectual disabilities - held in the Netherlands between June 14 and 16. The team trained at the Education and Science Ministry’s regional centre for support of the inclusive education process in Plovdiv, under the guidance of coach Dimitar Georgiev, the Ministry’s press centre said on Thursday.

More than 3,000 athletes with intellectual disabilities competed in 20 disciplines at the biennial Games in the Netherlands. Prior to the event, the Bulgarian hockey players participated in a prep camp at the Vasil Levski National Sports Academy in Sofia. The team is made up of ten athletes aged between 16 and 25.

In the qualifying round of the Games, they won 3-0 against the Czech Republic and 3-1 against Ireland, but lost 1-4 to Belgium. With another loss to the Belgian team and two draws against the Netherlands (2-2) and the UK (3-3), the Bulgarian athletes ended up competing with the hosts for the third spot. Following a highly contested match, the Bulgarian team won 3-2. Belgium came in first after winning over the UK.