site.btaKarlos Nasar Named Best European Weightlifter of 2024

Bulgaria's Olympic champion and world record-holder Karlos Nasar was named 2024 EWF-AIPS Weightlifter of 2024 by the European Weightlifting Federation (EWF) and the European section of the International Sports Press Association (AIPS) on Sunday. The awards were given at the opening ceremony for the 2025 European Championships in Chisinau, Moldova.

Nasar has not yet arrived in Moldova. His award was accepted by the Bulgaria Federation President Stefan Botev.

2024 was the most successful season in the 20-year-old athlete's career, as he became the first Bulgarian to win a European, World and Olympic title within one calendar year. In addition, Nasar set world records in the snatch, clean and jerk and was unchallenged in all the sporting forums he participated in.

He was named Best European Weightlifter ahead of Dadash Dadashbayli (Azerbaijan), Roberto Gutu (Germany), Olympic champion Lasha Talakhadze (Georgia), Marin Robu (Moldova), Yusuf Fehmi Genc (Turkiye), Varazdat Lalayan (Armenia), Oscar Reyes Martinez (Italy), Marcos Ruiz Velasco (Spain) and Yauheni Tsikhantsou (Belarus).

Talakhadze was presented with an EWF gold award for sporting merit.

Solfrid Koanda from Norway won the women's 2024 EWF-AIPS Weightlifter of the Year.

The EWF-AIPS Athlete for the Future award for women went to Aleksandra Grigoryan from Armenia, a 19-year-old who won world and European junior titles in 2024. The men’s winner was 16-year-old Ramazan Efe Yilmaz from Turkiye, the world and European youth champion.