The incredible story of the famous athlete Ivet Lalova shows mankind that you can never give up. Even a terrible injury did not interrupt the girl’s career and did not prevent her from becoming a world champion.
Athlete Biography
The Bulgarian athlete Ivet Lalova was born on May 18, 1984 in Sofia, her height is 1 m 68 cm, weight - 56 kg. The girl grew up in a family of athletes. My father, Miroslav Lalov, was a sprinter, participated in short-distance races. In 1966, he won the Bulgarian title. The mother of the athlete, Lily, also did professional athletics.
As a child, Ivet Lalova attended training in swimming and gymnastics. But soon the girl followed in the footsteps of her parents and went in for athletics. The first mentor of the athlete was Konstantin Milanov - he was a successful and famous coach in Bulgaria. It was he who saw and unleashed the potential of Yvet.
The girl was distinguished by a huge desire for sports achievements, she was ready to work hard and develop. The Bulgarian athlete liked to run the hundred-meter race most of all, but the coach revealed her ability to run at a distance of 200 m.
Start career Ivet Lalova
In just a couple of years of training under the leadership of Konstantin Milanov, the athlete was able to achieve incredible success in the career of an athlete. She took part in high-level competitions and occupied prestigious places.
In 2001, the name Ivet Lalova first appeared on the list of athletes at the Youth World Championships in Hungary. Athletics was already an integral part of her life for a girl. The young beauty wanted recognition and victories, at the debut competitions she reached the semifinals.
Then the athlete participated in the Junior World Championships in Jamaica in 2002, where she ran a hundred-meter race with a score of 11.83. And a year later, she won first place in the 200m race at the 2003 European Championships in Finland.
At the age of twenty, Ivet Lalova took part in the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. In international competitions, she took 4th and 5th place in sprints for 100 and 200 meters, respectively. In 2004, the athlete appeared on a treadmill at the World Athletics Finals in Monte Carlo (Monaco). Twelve years ago, she took 7th place at distances of 100 and 200 m. And a year later, the girl won gold at the European Championships in Madrid (Spain).
Forced break in the career of a Bulgarian athlete
In 2005, Ivet Lalova was supposed to perform at the World Championships in Helsinki. The athlete was looking forward to these competitions. And she was completely ready for them. All Bulgaria followed the career of an athlete and knew perfectly what Ivet Lalova was capable of. The injury received by the athlete during the usual workout did not allow the girl to take part in the 2005 Championship. During the run, the runner ran into one of the athletes and broke her right thigh.
Ivet was immediately hospitalized, doctors inserted a 36-centimeter pin into her leg, with which she lived for 3 long years. The girl was in a wheelchair and spent in it for two whole months. All dreams of victory collapsed. The Bulgarian athlete watched the Championship on TV in a hospital bed.
Long-term rehabilitation of athletes
For three years, Ivet Lalova underwent treatment. It was a long and difficult process of recovery and rehabilitation both physically and psychologically. Doctors gave disappointing predictions. Some doctors predicted the end of a professional athlete career.
But Ivet is a fighter, she did not give up. In 2007, after a successful operation, the girl began to restore physical fitness. The athlete returned to training and performed at the World Championships in Japan. Of course, she couldn’t run as fast as before, so she only got to the quarterfinals with a result of 11.33 in the 100 m race.
Continuation of a successful career
From 2007 to 2011, Ivet Lalova did not manage to return to her previous speed. She trained to exhaustion. The girl continued to participate in various competitions. She performed at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing (China), at the World Champions indoors in Doha (Qatar) in 2009, and in the fresh air in Berlin (Germany) in 2010.
In 2011, Ivet Lalova began working with Italian coach Roberto Bonomi and moved to Rieti. Collaboration with the new mentor almost immediately brought a good result. Bulgarian athlete performed at the 13th World Championships in Athletics in Daegu (South Korea). Ivet was the only European runner to reach the finals. It was here that she showed incredible speed and ended the season with an excellent result of 10.96 in the 100 meter race.
A year later, Ivet Lalova won the European Championship in Helsinki (Finland). She won a gold medal in the 100m sprint, which she hung on a 36-centimeter pin on her window.
In 2016, the athlete took part in the same competitions in Amsterdam (Netherlands). And again, an excellent result - silver in the races of 100 and 200 meters. Bulgarian athlete was beaten by British runner Dina Asher-Smith.
Ivet Lalova: personal life
In 2009, the Bulgarian athlete met the famous Italian sprinter Simone Collio. The chosen one, Ivet, is five years older than her, he comes from the small town of Cernusco sul Naviglio. The athletes immediately began a romantic relationship. And it was Simone who proposed Ivet to move to Italy and become the ward of his coach Roberto Bonomi.
September 21, 2013 the couple got married. Now the Bulgarian athlete is known as Lalova-Collio Ivet. The wedding of the athletes took place in the church of San Domenico in Rieti. The ceremony was attended by over 200 people. Among the guests were people respected and famous in the world of sports - these are Andrew Howe and Dobromir Karamarinov, Massimiliano and Roborto Donati, Sandro Giovannelli and Emanuele Formicetti.
Now Ivet Lalova-Collio lives in Italy with her husband. Spouses support each other, often train together. The couple has a very warm relationship.
Bulgarian athlete in good physical and psychological shape, she fully recovered from a terrible injury and is ready for new achievements.