Eleоnora Valerieva Kezhova ( bg, Елеонора Валериева Кежова; born 28 December 1985 in

Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and h ...

) is a retired

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...

n rhythmic gymnast. She is a two-time member of the Bulgarian rhythmic gymnastics team at the

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

, and contributed to a silver medal in the group all-around in 2003. The following year, at the 2004 Summer Olympics in

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

, Kezhova helped her squad claim a bronze medal in the same program.

Career

2000–2003

Kezhova made her official worldwide debut, as a 15-year-old teen, at the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 ( Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from ...

in Sydney, where she placed seventh for the Bulgarian squad in the group all-around tournament with a composite score of 38.432 (19.166 for five clubs and 19.266 for two hoops and three ribbons). At the

2002 World Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships XXV World Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships were held in New Orleans, United States from 10th to 14 July 2002. The competition was open to groups only and the designated apparatuses were Ribbon and Ball & Rope. Competitors There were particip ...

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, Kezhova and her Bulgarian team finished fourth in the same program with a score in 47.050, missing out the medal podium by 350-thousandths of a point. The following year, at the

2003 World Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships The XXVI World Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships were held in Budapest, the capital of Hungary, during September 24–29, 2003. Medal winners Individual Events Individual All-Around Individual Hoop Individual Ball Individual Clubs In ...

in Budapest, Hungary, Kezhova pulled off the second highest score both in ribbons and in hoops and clubs to hand the Bulgarians a silver medal in the group all-around tournament (a score of 50.175), and a qualifying ticket to her second Olympics.

2004 Summer Olympics

At the 2004 Summer Olympics in

, Kezhova Zhaneta Ilieva, Zornitsa Marinova, Kristina Rangelova, and twin sisters

Galina Galina, Halyna, or Halina (russian: Галина; from Greek ''γαλήνη'' "Serenity") is an East Slavic feminine given name, also popular in Bulgaria and Slovenia during the period of Soviet influence. Galina is the standard transliteration fr ...

and

Vladislava Tancheva Vladislava Tancheva ( bg, Владислава Танчева ; born 18 May 1987 in Varna) is a retired Bulgarian rhythmic gymnast. She contributed to a silver medal effort for the Bulgarian squad in the group all-around at the 2003 World Rhythm ...

in the competition, Kezhova performed a double routine using five ribbons (23.400) and a combination of three hoops and two balls (25.200) to deliver the Bulgarian squad a bronze-medal score in 48.600.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kezhova, Eleonora 1985 births Living people Bulgarian rhythmic gymnasts Gymnasts at the 2000 Summer Olympics Gymnasts at the 2004 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics Olympic gymnasts for Bulgaria Olympic bronze medalists for Bulgaria Olympic medalists in gymnastics Gymnasts from Sofia Medalists at the Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships

Career

2000–2003

2004 Summer Olympics

See also

References

External links