# Balkan Athletics Championships

The Balkan Athletics Championships or Balkan Games (Greek: Βαλκανικοί Αγώνες) is a regional athletics competition held between nations from the Balkans and organized by Balkan Athletics. The first games were held in Athens in 1929, and the most recent were being held in İzmir in 2024.

## Organization

The Games of 1929 were unofficial, and organized by the Hellenic Amateur Athletic Association (SEGAS). They became formalized after 1930 and have been held regularly since, with the exception of the 1940–1953 period due to the Second World War and post-war turmoil. In 1946 and 1947, unofficial Games were organized, under the name Balkan and Central European Games, which Czechoslovakia, Poland and Hungary (1947) also participated.
SEGAS were also central to the creation of the Balkan Athletics Indoor Championships in 1994 – a sister indoor event to the main outdoor competition.

## Nations

* Greece (from 1929)
* Romania (from 1929)
* Bulgaria (from 1929)
* Turkey (from 1931)
* Albania (from 1946)
* Slovenia (from 1992)
* Croatia (from 1992)
* North Macedonia (from 1992)
* Bosnia and Herzegovina (from 1992)
* Moldova (from 1992)
* Montenegro (from 2006)
* Serbia (from 2006)
* Armenia (from 2013)
* Cyprus (from 2014)
* Georgia (from 2014)
* Israel (from 2015)
* Kosovo (from 2016)
* San Marino (from 2016)
* Ukraine (from 2016)
* Azerbaijan (from 2017)
* Austria (from 2018)

### Former nations

* Kingdom of Yugoslavia (1929–1940)
* Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (1953–1990)
* Serbia and Montenegro (1992–2005)

## Editions

| Number | Year | Host City | Country | Events |
| Name:Balkan Games |||||
| | 1929 | Athens | Greece |
| 1 | 1930 | Athens | Greece |
| 2 | 1931 | Athens | Greece |
| 3 | 1932 | Athens | Greece |
| 4 | 1933 | Athens | Greece |
| 5 | 1934 | Zagreb | Yugoslavia |
| 6 | 1935 | Istanbul | Turkey |
| 7 | 1936 | Athens | Greece |
| 8 | 1937 | Bucharest | Romania |
| 9 | 1938 | Belgrade | Yugoslavia |
| 10 | 1939 | Athens | Greece |
| 11 | 1940 | Istanbul | Turkey |
| 1941-1952: Not Held |||||
| | 1946 | Tirana | Albania |
| | 1947 | Bucharest | Romania |
| Name:Balkan Athletics Championships |||||
| 12 | 1953 | Athens | Greece |
| 13 | 1954 | Belgrade | Yugoslavia |
| 14 | 1955 | Istanbul | Turkey |
| 15 | 1956 | Belgrade | Yugoslavia |
| 16 | 1957 | Athens | Greece |
| 17 | 1958 | Sofia | Bulgaria |
| 18 | 1959 | Bucharest | Romania |
| 19 | 1960 | Athens | Greece |
| 20 | 1961 | Belgrade | Yugoslavia |
| 21 | 1962 | Ankara | Turkey |
| 22 | 1963 | Sofia | Bulgaria |
| 23 | 1964 | Bucharest | Romania |
| 24 | 1965 | Piraeus | Greece |
| 25 | 1966 | Sarajevo | Yugoslavia |
| 26 | 1967 | Istanbul | Turkey |
| 27 | 1968 | Piraeus | Greece |
| 28 | 1969 | Sofia | Bulgaria |
| 29 | 1970 | Bucharest | Romania |
| 30 | 1971 | Zagreb | Yugoslavia |
| 31 | 1972 | İzmir | Turkey |
| 32 | 1973 | Piraeus | Greece |
| 33 | 1974 | Sofia | Bulgaria |
| 34 | 1975 | Bucharest | Romania |
| 35 | 1976 | Celje | Yugoslavia |
| 36 | 1977 | Ankara | Turkey |
| 37 | 1978 | Thessaloniki | Greece |
| 38 | 1979 | Piraeus | Greece |
| 39 | 1980 | Sofia | Bulgaria |
| 40 | 1981 | Sarajevo | Yugoslavia |
| 41 | 1982 | Bucharest | Romania |
| 42 | 1983 | İzmir | Turkey |
| 43 | 1984 | Athens | Greece |
| 44 | 1985 | Stara Zagora | Bulgaria |
| 45 | 1986 | Ljubljana | Yugoslavia |
| 46 | 1988 | Ankara | Turkey |
| 47 | 1989 | Serres | Greece |
| 48 | 1990 | Istanbul | Turkey |
| 49 | 1992 | Sofia | Bulgaria |
| 50 | 1994 | Trikala | Greece |
| 51 | 1996 | Niš | Yugoslavia |
| 52 | 1997 | Athens | Greece |
| 53 | 1998 | Belgrade | Yugoslavia |
| 54 | 1999 | Istanbul | Turkey |
| 55 | 2000 | Kavala | Greece |
| 56 | 2001 | Trikala | Greece |
| 57 | 2002 | Bucharest | Romania |
| 58 | 2003 | Thiva | Greece |
| 59 | 2004 | Istanbul | Turkey |
| 60 | 2005 | Novi Sad | Serbia and Montenegro |
| 61 | 2006 | Athens | Greece |
| 62 | 2007 | Plovdiv | Bulgaria |
| 63 | 2008 | Bar | Montenegro |
| 64 | 2009 | İzmir | Turkey |
| 65 | 2010 | Larissa | Greece | |
| 66 | 2011 | Sliven | Bulgaria | |
| 67 | 2012 | Eskişehir | Turkey | |
| 68 | 2013 | Stara Zagora | Bulgaria | |
| 69 | 2014 | Pitești | Romania | |
| 70 | 2015 | Pitești | Romania | |
| 71 | 2016 | Pitești | Romania | |
| 72 | 2017 | Novi Pazar | Serbia | |
| 73 | 2018 | Stara Zagora | Bulgaria | 42 |
| 74 | 2019 | Pravets | Bulgaria | 42 |
| 75 | 2020 | Cluj-Napoca | Romania | 44 |
| 76 | 2021 | Smederevo | Serbia | 44 |
| 77 | 2022 | Craiova | Romania | 44 |
| 78 | 2023 | Kraljevo | Serbia | 44 |
| 79 | 2024 | İzmir | Turkey | 44 |

## Ranking

Source:
| Year | Ranking by Medals | Ranking by Medals | Ranking by Medals | Ranking by Medals |
| Year | 1 | 2 | 3 | Source |
| 1930 | Greece | Bulgaria | Yugoslavia | |
| 1931 | Greece | Yugoslavia | Romania | |
| 1932-2021 |
| 2022 | Greece | Romania | Turkey | |
| 2023 | Turkey | Serbia | Ukraine | |

## Results

Full Results:

### Medals (1930-2023)

| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | Romania | 754 | 699 | 641 | 2,094 |
| 2 | Bulgaria | 563 | 538 | 488 | 1,589 |
| 3 | Greece | 544 | 539 | 515 | 1,598 |
| 4 | Yugoslavia | 386 | 365 | 361 | 1,112 |
| 5 | Turkey | 165 | 215 | 271 | 651 |
| 6 | Serbia | 78 | 62 | 71 | 211 |
| 7 | Serbia and Montenegro | 37 | 57 | 78 | 172 |
| 8 | Ukraine | 35 | 34 | 17 | 86 |
| 9 | Croatia | 24 | 36 | 40 | 100 |
| 10 | Moldova | 22 | 43 | 43 | 108 |
| 11 | Slovenia | 17 | 13 | 20 | 50 |
| 12 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 15 | 25 | 37 | 77 |
| 13 | Albania | 15 | 19 | 30 | 64 |
| 14 | Cyprus | 11 | 13 | 16 | 40 |
| 15 | Austria | 7 | 8 | 2 | 17 |
| 16 | Montenegro | 6 | 4 | 14 | 24 |
| 17 | Armenia | 6 | 3 | 2 | 11 |
| 18 | Israel | 3 | 10 | 12 | 25 |
| 19 | North Macedonia | 3 | 3 | 13 | 19 |
| 20 | Authorised Neutral Athletes | 1 | 6 | 11 | 18 |
| 21 | Azerbaijan | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 22 | Kosovo | 0 | 5 | 1 | 6 |
| 23 | Georgia | 0 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| Totals (23 entries) | Totals (23 entries) | 2,693 | 2,700 | 2,686 | 8,079 |
Source:

### Indoor

Balkan Athletics Indoor Championships

### Race Walking

Balkan Cross Country Championships

### Cross Country

Balkan Race Walking Championships

### Masters

Balkan Masters Athletics Championships

### Others

* Balkan Mountain Running Championships
* Balkan Half Marathon Championships
* Balkan Marathon Championships
* Balkan Athletics U20 Championships
* Balkan U20 Indoor Athletics Championships
* Balkan U18 Athletics Championships
* Balkan Relay Championships

## Championships records
### Men

| Event | Record | Athlete | Nationality | Date | Championships | Place |
| 100 m | 10.11 (+0.5 m/s) | Jak Ali Harvey | Turkey | 1 August 2015 | 2015 Championships | Pitești, Romania |
| 200 m | 20.50 (-0.6 m/s) | Sergii Smelyk | Ukraine | 3 September 2019 | 2019 Championships | Pravets, Bulgaria |
| 400 m | 45.36 | Oleksandr Pohorilko | Ukraine | 22 July 2023 | 2023 Championships | Kraljevo, Serbia |
| 800 m | 1:45.73 | Luciano Sušanj | Yugoslavia | 2 August 1974 | | Sofia, Bulgaria |
| 1500 m | 3:40.40 | Petre Lupan | Romania | 5 August 1972 | | İzmir, Turkey |
| 5000 m | 13:42.43 | Michalis Kousis | Greece | 1978 | | Thessaloniki, Greece |
| 110 m hurdles | 13.28 (+0.9 m/s) | Milan Trajkovic | Cyprus | 23 July 2023 | 2023 Championships | Kraljevo, Serbia |
| 400 m hurdles | 48.71 | Yasmani Copello | Turkey | 22 July 2023 | 2023 Championships | Kraljevo, Serbia |
| 3000 m steeplechase | 8:22.77 | Florin Ionescu | Romania | 28 June 1997 | | Athens, Greece |
| High jump | 2.31 m | Sorin Matei | Romania | 16 July 1988 | | Ankara, Turkey |
| Pole vault | 5.70 m | Emmanouil Karalis | Greece | 27 June 2021 | 2021 Championships | Smederevo, Serbia |
| Long jump | 8.18 m NWI | Konstadínos Koukodímos | Greece | 4 July 1992 | | Sofia, Bulgaria |
| Triple jump | 17.24 m | Marian Oprea | Romania | 13 July 2003 28 July 2013 | | Thebes, Greece Stara Zagora |
| Shot put | 21.50 m | Armin Sinančević | Serbia | 26 June 2021 | 2021 Championships | Smederevo, Serbia |
| Discus throw | 65.44 m | Ion Zamfirache | Romania | 15 August 1982 | | Bucharest, Romania |
| Javelin throw | 83.60 m | Andrian Mardare | Moldova | 20 September 2020 | 2020 Championships | Cluj-Napoca, Romania |
| Hammer throw | 79.16 m | Aléxandros Papadimitríou | Greece | 12 July 2003 | | Thebes, Greece |
| Decathlon | 7995 pts | Saša Karan | Yugoslavia | 1990 | | Istanbul, Turkey |
| 4 × 100 m relay | 39.09 | Ertan Ozkan Kayhan Ozer Batuhan Altintaş Ramil Guliyev | Turkey | 22 July 2023 | 2023 Championships | Kraljevo, Serbia |
| 4 × 400 m relay | 3:03.94 | | Yugoslavia | 17 July 1988 | | Ankara, Turkey |

### Women

| Event | Record | Athlete | Nationality | Date | Championships | Place |
| 100 m | 10.96 (+0.8 m/s) | Ivet Lalova | Bulgaria | 2 July 2011 | | Sliven |
| 200 m | 22.45 (+1.2 m/s) | Ivet Lalova-Collio | Bulgaria | 3 September 2019 | 2019 Championships | Pravets, Bulgaria |
| 400 m | 50.98 | Jelica Pavličić | Yugoslavia | 3 August 1974 | | Sofia |
| 800 m | 1:56.42 | Paula Ivan | Romania | 16 July 1988 | | Ankara |
| 1500 m | 4:04.56 | Corina Dumbrăvean | Romania | 24 July 2005 | | Novi Sad |
| 5000 m | 15:16.47 | Luiza Gega | Albania | 20 June 2022 | 2022 Championships | Craiova, Romania |
| 100 m hurdles | 12.26 | Yordanka Donkova | Bulgaria | 7 September 1986 | | Ljubljana |
| 400 m hurdles | 54.23 | Vania Stambolova | Bulgaria | 2 July 2011 | | Sliven |
| 3000 m steeplechase | 9:17.89 | Luiza Gega | Albania | 19 June 2022 | 2022 Championships | Craiova, Romania |
| High jump | 2.01 m | Stefka Kostadinova | Bulgaria | 6 September 1986 | | Ljubljana |
| Pole vault | 4.45 m | Nikoléta Kiriakopoúlou | Greece | 19 July 2008 | | Argos Orestiko |
| Long jump | 7.14 m (+1.2 m/s) | Mirela Dulgheru | Romania | 5 July 1992 | | Sofia |
| Triple jump | 14.60 m (+1.7 m/s) | Paraskevi Papachristou | Greece | 20 July 2018 | 2018 Championships | Stara Zagora, Bulgaria |
| Shot put | 21.11 m | Verzhinia Veselinova | Bulgaria | 14 June 1980 | | Sofia |
| Discus throw | 70.20 m | Daniela Costian | Romania | 17 July 1988 | | Ankara |
| Hammer throw | 73.97 m | Zalina Marghieva | Moldova | 2 August 2015 | 2015 Championships | Pitești, Romania |
| Javelin throw | 60.60 m | Marija Vučenović | Serbia | 20 July 2018 | 2018 Championships | Stara Zagora, Bulgaria |
| Heptathlon | 6304 pts | Emilia Dimitrova | Bulgaria | 7 September 1986 | | Ljubljana |
| 4 × 100 m relay | 42.89 | | Bulgaria | 1988 | | Ankara |
| 4 × 400 m relay | 3:27.39 | | Romania | 1985 | | Stara Zagora |

## 1940 athlete naming

The 1940 shot put champion was listed as Arat Ararat from Turkey. The birth name of this athlete was Sokratis Ioannidis, a Greek Orthodox born in Istanbul. Due to political friction between Turkey and Greece at that time, the Turks decided it would be more politically correct to change his name to Arat Ararat. This was the name he was known by in the athletic circles.