Camille Bened is the winner of the 3rd edition of the Winter Piotr Nurowski Best European Young Athlete prize.
The young French biathlete received her prize in recognition of her sporting accomplishments, including a gold medal at the Winter European Youth Olympic Festival last year in Erzurum, Turkey.
She accepted the award last 11 May at the Gala dinner taking place at the Belgrade City Hall as part of the annual European Olympic Committees Seminar. The runner-up prize went to Swedish freestyle skier Jennie-Lee Burmansson, while Polish speed skater Karolina Bosiek received the third-most votes. Tied in fourth place were German figure skater Annika Hocke and short-track speed skater Peter Murphy from Luxembourg.
The winning athlete was awarded with a financial support of €15,000, while the second- and third-place finishers secured €8,000 and €5,000 respectively. The two fourth-place athletes, meanwhile, both received €3,000.
“I am honored to have been selected for this prestigious award. It’s amazing to see your work recognised by the sporting community. The prize will definitely keep me motivated to excel, while the scholarship money will certainly help take away some of the financial pressure,” Bened said after receiving the award.
This year, five athletes were shortlisted from a list of 19 nominees. Earlier in the day, EOC Athletes’ Commission chair Gerd Kanter welcomed the athletes to the seminar, where they gave short presentations about their accomplishments.
“The Piotr Nurowski prize is a fantastic recognition of the value young athletes bring to the Olympic Movement. We hope that this award, and the scholarships that go with it, will provide valuable support in their pursuit of even greater athletic and personal excellence,” Kanter said after the award ceremony.
About the Piotr Nurowski prize
The annual prize is awarded to young, up-and-coming athletes that over the past year have showcased not only outstanding sporting achievements, but also exceptional conduct on and off the field of play. The prize was created in memory of the former President of the Polish Olympic Committee who tragically died in 2010 in a plane crash in Russia. The prize has been awarded to deserving summer athletes since 2010 while a winter edition has been in place since 2016.
