Mirela RAHNEVA

Canada

Skeleton

Date of Birth: 26 Jul 1988

Age: 33

Gender: Female

Place of birth: RUSE

Birth Country:

Bulgaria

Residence: OTTAWA, ON

Residence Country:

Canada

Events and Medals
Records
Schedule
Bio
General Interest
Milestones

Events and Medals

Discipline	Event	Rank	Medal
Skeleton	Women	5

Schedule

Start Time	Location	Event	Status
	Yanqing National Sliding Centre	Women Official Training Heat 1	Finished
After Heat 1	Yanqing National Sliding Centre	Women Official Training Heat 2	Finished
	Yanqing National Sliding Centre	Women Official Training Heat 3	Finished
After Heat 3	Yanqing National Sliding Centre	Women Official Training Heat 4	Finished
	Yanqing National Sliding Centre	Women Official Training Heat 5	Finished
After Heat 5	Yanqing National Sliding Centre	Women Official Training Heat 6	Finished
	Yanqing National Sliding Centre	Women Heat 1	Finished
	Yanqing National Sliding Centre	Women Heat 2	Finished
	Yanqing National Sliding Centre	Women Heat 3	Finished
	Yanqing National Sliding Centre	Women Heat 4	Finished

Biographical Information

Highlights

Athlete:

Historical Results

Olympic Games
Rank	Event	Year	Location	Result
12	Women	2018	PyeongChang, KOR	00:03:29.520

World Championships
Rank	Event	Year	Location	Result
8	Women	2017	Koenigssee, GER	2:37.12
10	Mixed Team	2020	Altenberg, GER	1:56.75
12	Women	2019	Whistler, BC, CAN	3:36.50
16	Women	2020	Altenberg, GER	3:59.51

World Cup Rankings
Season	Women
2021/22	8
2019/20	5
2018/19	3
2017/18	8
2016/17	3

World Cup - Best Achievements
Season	Women
2021/22	2 x 3rd, 1 x 5th, 2 x 11th
2019/20	1 x 2nd, 4 x 4th, 2 x 7th
2018/19	2 x 1st, 1 x 2nd, 1 x 4th

Ten Best World Cup Performances in Current Season
Rank	Event	Season	Location	Result
3	Women	2021/22	Winterberg, GER	1:53.97
3	Women	2021/22	St. Moritz, SUI	2:18.22
5	Women	2021/22	Winterberg, GER	1:56.54
11	Women	2021/22	Altenberg, GER	2:00.50
11	Women	2021/22	Innsbruck, AUT	1:48.94
13	Women	2021/22	Sigulda, LAT	1:46.07
14	Women	2021/22	Innsbruck, AUT	1:48.86
18	Women	2021/22	Altenberg, GER	1:58.59

Nickname:

Mimi (cbc.ca, 22 Feb 2017)

Hobbies:

Biking, hiking, paddleboarding, cooking, reading, golf, yoga, listening to music, and visiting farmers markets.

Occupation:

Athlete, Hospitality Professional

Education:

Graduated in 2010 from the University of Guelph (CAN), with a Bachelor's degree in Commerce, Travel and Tourism.

Family:

Father, Stoyan. Mother, Valentina. Has two sisters.

Languages spoken:

Bulgarian, English, French

Club name:

Bobsleigh Canada Skeleton

Coach:

National: Keith Loach (CAN), Ivo Steinbergs (LAT)
Personal: Quin Sekulich (CAN)

Other sports:

Rugby sevens: Former member of the Canadian team. (Info 2018)

Debut:

2013 North American Cup in Lake Placid (10th)
2016 World Cup in Whistler (5th)

Injuries:

Sustained a herniated disk injury at the C5-C6 vertebrae, and has pinched a nerve root. Required surgery and missed all of last year's COVID-shortened season. (ibsf.com, 7 Dec 2020; gofundme.com, 12 Dec 2021)

National team:

2016

Start:

Took up skeleton at age 24. (Info 2018)

Reason:

She had played rugby at the university level in Canada, and for the national rugby sevens team. After graduating she initially chose to focus on her career as a wedding planner, but eventually wanted to return to sport. In November 2012 she went to a bobsleigh selection camp, but was considered too small for the sport and it was suggested she should try skeleton. "After college I thought life was going on, that I needed to move on (from sport) to have a professional career. In time, it did not seem like the right choice. I had seen bobsleigh and skeleton at the 2010 Olympics and thought it was so cool. I wanted to know more about the sport, so I contacted the Ontario team." (Info 2018)

Ambition:

Step on the podium at the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games. (gofundme.com, 12 Dec 2021)

Hero:

Mixed martial artist Ronda Rousey (USA).

Gymnast Nadia Comaneci (ROU), nine-time Olympic medallist (five gold). (Info 2018)

Influence:

Her father. As a former competitive gymnast, he would measure out 100 metres on a bike path and time her running over and over again when she was a young child. "He trained me about discipline, that you had to have discipline in everything you do. I remember running around outside school. It meant nothing, but I needed to be first every time, I needed to be the fastest." (Info 2018)

Ritual:

Travels with a dreamcatcher that she sets up in her room during competitions. (olympic.ca)

Philosophy:

Dream big. (gofundme.com, 12 Dec 2021)

General Interest

TEAM TROUBLES
In 2017 she and fellow Canadian skeleton sliders Elisabeth Vathje and Jane Channell worked with a sports psychologist after the trio ended the 2016/17 season not talking to each other. "You know when you're in close proximity to anyone for that long of a period and thrown into a competitive environment, of course there are going to be some bumps in the road. I think the biggest thing we worked on was having trust between each other and knowing that not any one of us has an ill wish for one another. So trust is a big thing. That's covered and laid out. I think that's huge. That everyone knows nothing is meant in a negative way." (Info 2018)

FROM BULGARIA TO CANADA
At age 10 she and her family emigrated from Bulgaria to Ottawa, ON, Canada. Her parents took jobs delivering fast food and cleaning houses to support the family in their new home. "They gave up careers, life and family so they could give their kids more opportunity. Coming here (to Canada) opened so many doors for me, and I really do believe anything is possible as long as you put your mind to it." (Info 2018)

GETTING INTO SKELETON
Lived in a church basement for the first few months of her skeleton career because she had to move to Lake Placid, NY (USA) which was the closest track to her hometown of Ottawa. (olympic.ca)

OCCUPATION
Provides mindfulness classes. Focuses on bringing attention to your mind, body, and breath. (LinkedIn profile, Jan 2022)

Milestones

Finished 12th in her Olympic Winter Games debut at PyeongChang 2018.

In six starts at three World Championships (2017, 2019, 2020), she has two top-10 finishes individually (eighth in 2017, 10th in 2020) and a silver medal in the team competition.

Won her 11th World Cup medal (bronze) on 16 January 2022 in St. Moritz, her second medal of the 2021/22 season. Her best finish was first place at St. Moritz in January 2017, her first World Cup season, finishing 1.83 seconds ahead of Kendall Wesenberg (USA).

Twice she has finished in third in the Overall World Cup standings (2016/17, 2018/19).

Social Media

Legend

:: Gold Medal Event

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