Darja Varfolomeev’s eye-catching success in 2023 has led her to being nominated for the Piotr Nurowski Prize

Darja won Germany’s first rhythmic gymnastics World Championships all-around title in 48 years, having finished in second place in 2022 when she secured Germany a quota place for the Olympic Games Paris 2024. 

Despite being just 16-years-old, the gymnast is a role model for other young athletes and holds a large sense of responsibility and reliability across the team.

After being shortlisted, Darja said: “My biggest dream is to participate at the Olympic Games. Since I was a little child, I looked up to the world’s best athletes who wowed the crowd with amazing performances. I like to interact with the audience, and I enjoy it when people like my routines. 

“Rhythmic gymnastics is for me the most beautiful sport in the world. It combines elegance, musicality, coordination of body and apparatus difficulties and high-level execution. My goal is to inspire young athletes to be active in any kind of sport.”