18-year old Josif Miladinov came in in 8^th position in the 100 m. butterfly finals at the Olympics in Tokyo.

His performance is a major achievement, as the country has not had a swimming finalist at Olympic Games since the Games in Seoul in 1988. Bulgaria’s debutant came into the finals after previously placing 4^th, and explained his 8^th place by saying he had not felt very well.

“Physically, in the end I was very tired, I was barely able to get my arms out of the water. Yesterday I took a break, I don’t know what happened,” he commented. Josif Miladinov expressed his gratitude for the support he has been given by his country and even apologized for not living up to expectations.