Rotary Euxinograd Awards 2026 for Outstanding Secondary School Students and Teachers
On 3 November 2026, at 6:30 pm, at the Boris Georgiev City Art Gallery in Varna, the Rotary Club Varna-Euxinograd presented the "Rotary Euxinograd" awards for outstanding secondary school students and teachers for the 19th year in a row. Over the years, more than 330 awards have been presented to outstanding students and teachers – people whose achievements bring pride to their schools and to the city of Varna.
The ceremony was attended by District Governor Aleksandar Petrov, Mayor of Varna Blagomir Kotsev, Deputy Mayor Sofia Koleva, Assistant District Governor Elena Filipova and the Head of the Regional Department of Education in Varna, Dr Irena Radeva.
The nominations are based on proposals from the teachers' councils of Varna's schools, which put forward secondary school students with significant achievements in mastering scientific knowledge and practice, demonstrated at national and international competitions, contests and olympiads during the 2025/2026 school year. The "Rotary Euxinograd" awards are also given to teachers for significant achievements in working with students who have performed successfully at national or international level, and for participation in projects.
The awards are given in four categories:
Social Sciences and Humanities
Mathematics and Natural Sciences
Technology
Arts
This year Varna's schools submitted 45 nominations. After careful selection and evaluation, 4 "Rotary Euxinograd" awards went to students and 5 to teachers. The awards were presented by the official guests and by members of the Rotary Club Varna-Euxinograd.
Award-winning students
Each receives a medal, a diploma, a cash prize and a badge:
Zvezdemir Penev, "Dr. Petar Beron" Mathematics High School, Social Sciences and Humanities – for a silver medal at the International Geography Olympiad (IGEO) in Istanbul, Turkey, and a gold medal at the European Geography Olympiad (EGEO) in Varna.
Svetoslav Arabov, "Dr. Petar Beron" Mathematics High School, Mathematics and Natural Sciences – for a gold medal at the European Physics Olympiad (EuPhO) in Sweden and a silver medal at the International Physics Olympiad (IPhO) in Colombia.
Damyan Svobodnikov, "Dr. Petar Beron" Mathematics High School, Technology – for a silver medal at the European Junior Olympiad in Informatics (EJOI) in Kaunas, Lithuania.
Maksim Yalnazov, First Language School, Arts – for the Grand Prix, first place in the "Covers" category and the award for best song in the "Original Music" category at the 31st International Festival Fens in Slovenia.
A further 15 students received a diploma, a cash prize and a badge.
Award-winning teachers
The Rotary Club Varna-Euxinograd also honoured the teachers who mentor the award-winning students. A diploma, a cash prize and a badge go to:
Elena Dimitrova, "Dr. Petar Beron" Mathematics High School, Mathematics and Natural Sciences – for her students' international successes at the Iranian Geometry Olympiad and the Ludovico Ferrari International Tournament (Gold Cup), and many successes in national competitions.
Dimitrina Tsoneva, "Blagovest Sendov" Vocational High School of Computer Modelling and Computer Systems, Social Sciences and Humanities – for her students' successes at the "Ideas That Change the World" festival ("Best Business Project") and JA Bulgaria's "Rising Stars" ("Best Technology Company"), and for using innovative teaching methods.
Pavel Petrov, "Dr. Petar Beron" Mathematics High School, Social Sciences and Humanities – for his students' successes at the National Olympiad in History and Civilisations and the "Buditel" National Historical Memory Competition, and for earning his doctorate.
Zornitsa Lyubcheva, "Georgi Stoykov Rakovski" Varna High School of Commerce, Social Sciences and Humanities – for her students' successes at the European Money Quiz in Brussels and the National Insurance Competition, and for an eighth consecutive year in the educational programme "Judiciary, Informed Choice and Civic Trust" with the Administrative Court of Varna.
Yordanka Nikolova, "Blagovest Sendov" Vocational High School of Computer Modelling and Computer Systems, Technology – for her students' successes: "Best Technology Company" in the "Rising Stars" initiative, "Best Business Project" at the national festival "Ideas That Change the World", and "Teacher of the Year" from Junior Achievement Bulgaria.
The ceremony ended with performances by the award winners in the Arts category.
Vasil Vasilev
President, Rotary Club Varna-Euxinograd