The Balkan Athletics Indoor Championships, also known as the Balkan Indoor Games (), is an annual international regional indoor track and field competition between athletes from the Balkans. Following a test event in 1991,Ματιές στα Σπορ (Survey of Sports), vol. 29 (January 1992), p. 43. it was officially launched in 1994.Balkan Indoor Championships. GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2015-03-04. Organised by the Association of the Balkan Athletics Federations (ABAF), it is typically held in February.Mulkeen, Jon (2013-02-24). World leads by Lavillenie in Metz and Lendore, Duncan and Dendy in Fayetteville. IAAF. Retrieved on 2015-03-04.Oprea eager for Moscow gold and World record - Balkan Indoor Champs report. IAAF (2006-02-23). Retrieved on 2015-03-04.Mulkeen, Jon (2014-02-22). Beitia clears two metres, Fassinotti sets Italian record – indoor champs round-up. IAAF. Retrieved on 2015-03-04. The competition complemented the long-running annual outdoor track and field tournament: the Balkan Games.The Balkan Games in transition. IAAF (2001-02-19). Retrieved on 2015-03-04.
It received strong support from the Hellenic Amateur Athletic Association – until 2002, the Peace and Friendship Stadium in Piraeus, Greece was the permanent host, as this was the only international standard indoor track and field arena in the region at that point. The Peania Indoors Arena, in the Metropolitan area of the Greek capital, took on hosting duties from 2003 to 2006, then began alternating with the Faliro, Piraeus stadium. The event was cancelled in both 2010 and 2011 due to the insolvency of the Greek athletics body, linked to the Greek government-debt crisis.No Athens Indoor meeting this year or Balkan Indoor Games . Track and Field News. Retrieved on 2015-03-04. The event was continued in 2012 with Turkey as the new host nation, which had built the Ataköy Athletics Arena for the 2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships. The Balkan competition served as a major test event for the global championships.Turkish medal hopes and venue tested - Istanbul 2012 . IAAF (2012-02-20). Retrieved on 2015-03-04.Results. Association of Balkan Athletic Federations. Retrieved on 2015-03-04.
The programme of events has been similar to that of the IAAF World Indoor Championships, except for the omission of the combined track and field events and (usually) the 4 × 400 metres relay. Women's pole vault was introduced in 1998, giving the sexes event parity, and the 200 metres for both sexes was dropped after 2005 in line with international standards. The 1994 championships featured racewalking competitions, but these were dropped for subsequent editions. In addition to individual titles, a men's and a women's team title is awarded to the best performing nation in each section. Both medal tables and points tables are collated, with the points score contributing to the team title.Balkan Indoor Championships 2015 TEAM POINTS - MEN . Association of Balkan Athletic Federations. Retrieved on 2015-03-04.Balkan Indoor Championships 2015 TEAM POINTS - WOMEN . Association of Balkan Athletic Federations. Retrieved on 2015-03-04. The points table was introduced in 2002.
A total of seventeen nations have entered the competition during its history, with Yugoslavia and Serbia and Montenegro being former competitors; all successor states of Yugoslavia have since competed independently, bar Kosovo. The initial competition was between six nations, which expanded to nine by the end of the 1990s. The number of competing nations was further expanded between 2011 and 2014, with five more countries being admitted by the ABAF. Azerbaijan has also competed as a guest nation; its performances were discounted for medal and points-scoring purposes.20th Balkan Indoor Championships 2015 Istanbul, TUR/Men/Full Results Men.pdf . ABAF. Retrieved on 2015-03-04. Romania and Greece have historically been the most successful nations at the event, although Turkey has been the most dominant since 2012.
Editions EditionYearStadiumCityCountryDatesNo. ofeventsNo. ofathletesMen's winnerWomen's winner—1991Peace and Friendship StadiumPiraeusGreeceJanuary2211994Peace and Friendship StadiumPiraeusGreece20 February2521995Peace and Friendship StadiumPiraeusGreece25 February2331996Peace and Friendship StadiumPiraeusGreece24 February2341997Peace and Friendship StadiumPiraeusGreece22 February2351998Peace and Friendship StadiumPiraeusGreece22 February2461999Peace and Friendship StadiumPiraeusGreece13 February2472000Peace and Friendship StadiumPiraeusGreece12 February2482001Peace and Friendship StadiumPiraeusGreece18 February2492002Peace and Friendship StadiumPiraeusGreece23 February24102003Peania Indoors ArenaPaianiaGreece4 March24112004Peania Indoors ArenaPaianiaGreece28 February24122005Peania Indoors ArenaPaianiaGreece16 February24132006Peania Indoors ArenaPaianiaGreece22 February22142007Peace and Friendship StadiumPiraeusGreece21 February22152008Peania Indoors ArenaPaianiaGreece9 February22162009Peace and Friendship StadiumPiraeusGreece21 February22—2010Cancelled—2011Cancelled172012Ataköy Athletics ArenaIstanbulTurkey18 February22182013Ataköy Athletics ArenaIstanbulTurkey23 February22192014Ataköy Athletics ArenaIstanbulTurkey22 February22202015Ataköy Athletics ArenaIstanbulTurkey21 February22212016Ataköy Athletics ArenaIstanbulTurkey27 February22222017Kombank ArenaBelgradeSerbia25 February22232018Ataköy Athletics ArenaIstanbulTurkey17 February24242019Ataköy Athletics ArenaIstanbulTurkey16 February24252020Ataköy Athletics ArenaIstanbulTurkey15 February24262021Ataköy Athletics ArenaIstanbulTurkey20 February24272022Ataköy Athletics ArenaIstanbulTurkey5 March24282024Ataköy Athletics ArenaIstanbulTurkey10 February24292025Atletska dvoranaBelgradeSerbia15 February24302026Atletska dvoranaBelgradeSerbia21 February24 Team winners decided by medals up to 2001, with the points scoring format introduced in 2002.
Ranking
YearRanking by Medals123Source1994 1995 1996-20212022 2024
Medals (1994-2024)
Source:
Participation NationFirst appearance 1991 1991 1991 1991 1991 1996 1996 1998 2007 2007 2011 2013 2014 2014 2014 2016?21st Balkan Indoor Championships 2016 Istanbul, TUR --- Results (Women's) --- Balkan-Athletics.EU 2019† 1991† 1994–20022003–2006 Note: † = former competing nation As Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
Championships records Key:
Men EventRecordAthleteNationalityDateMeetPlace60 m6.53Hristo Iliev21 February 20262026 ChampionshipsBelgrade, Serbia200 m21.25Ioan Vieru28 February 20042004 ChampionshipsPaiania, Greece400 m46.35Iliya Dzhivondov12 February 20002000 ChampionshipsAthens, Greece800 m1:48.19Oleg Myronets20 February 20212021 ChampionshipsIstanbul, Turkey1500 m3:37.49İlham Tanui Özbilen23 February 20132013 ChampionshipsIstanbul, Turkey3000 m7:42.49Polat Kemboi Arıkan18 February 20122012 ChampionshipsIstanbul, Turkey60 m hurdles7.57Gheorghe Boroi20 February 19941994 ChampionshipsAthens, GreeceHigh jump2.32 mCristian Popescu20 February 19941994 ChampionshipsAthens, GreecePole vault5.76 mIvan Horvat25 February 20172017 ChampionshipsBelgrade, SerbiaLong jump8.12 mBozhidar Sarâboyukov15 February 20252025 ChampionshipsBelgrade, SerbiaTriple jump17.51 mMarian Oprea22 February 20062006 ChampionshipsPaiania, GreeceShot put20.89 mAndrei Toader15 February 20252025 ChampionshipsBelgrade, Serbia4 × 400 m relay3:10.36Andrei RemusMihai DringoSimon DenisRobert Parge5 March 20222022 ChampionshipsIstanbul, Turkey
Women EventRecordAthleteNationalityDateMeetPlace60 m7.13Tezdzhan Naimova21 February 20072007 ChampionshipsAthens, Greece200 m23.70Angela Moroșanu16 February 20052005 ChampionshipsPaiania, Greece400 m51.06Vania Stambolova22 February 20062006 ChampionshipsPaiania, Greece800 m1:59.82Mihaela Neacșu21 February 20072007 ChampionshipsAthens, Greece1500 m4:06.89Luiza Gega27 February 20162006 ChampionshipsIstanbul, Turkey3000 m8:55.22Cristina Grosu23 February 20022002 ChampionshipsAthens, Greece60 m hurdles8.02Andrea Ivančević27 February 20162016 ChampionshipsIstanbul, TurkeyHigh jump1.97 mStefka Kostadinova20 February 19941994 ChampionshipsAthens, GreecePole vault4.60 mIana Gladiichuk20 February 20212021 ChampionshipsIstanbul, TurkeyLong jump6.96 mIvana Španović25 February 20172017 ChampionshipsBelgrade, SerbiaTriple jump14.84 mHrysopiyi Devetzi4 March 20032003 ChampionshipsPaiania, GreeceShot put19.30 mAnca Heltne21 February 20092009 ChampionshipsAthens, Greece4 × 400 m relay3:33.76Kateryna KlymiukTetiana MelnykAnastasiia BryzginaAnna Ryzhykova16 February 20192019 ChampionshipsIstanbul, Turkey
References
External links
Balkan Athletics former website