Gabriela Stoeva

Gabriela Stoeva
Personal information
CountryBulgaria
Born (1994-07-15) 15 July 1994 (age 30)
Haskovo, Bulgaria
Height1.68 m (5 ft 6 in)
Years active2009–present
HandednessRight
Women's doubles
Highest ranking8 (with Stefani Stoeva 8 November 2018)
Current ranking18 (with Stefani Stoeva 24 September 2024)
Medal record
Women's badminton
Representing  Bulgaria
European Games
2015 Baku Women's doubles
2023 Kraków–Małopolska Women's doubles
European Championships
2018 Huelva Women's doubles
2021 Kyiv Women's doubles
2022 Madrid Women's doubles
2017 Kolding Women's doubles
2024 Saarbrücken Women's doubles
European Women's Team Championships
2016 Kazan Women's team
2014 Basel Women's team
European Junior Championships
2013 Ankara Women's doubles
BWF profile

Gabriela Stoeva (Bulgarian: Габриела Стоева; born 15 July 1994) is a Bulgarian badminton player specializing in doubles. Her current partner is her younger sister, Stefani Stoeva. The pair is the three-time European Champion and two-time European Games gold medalist as well. They competed at the 2016, 2020 and the 2024 Summer Olympics.

Career

Gabriela playing with her sister, Stefani

Gabriela Stoeva started playing badminton at age 10 in the Haskovo School Club. She joined the national team in 2008, and made a debut in the international event in 2009. In 2009, she won a bronze medal at the European U-17 Championships in the girls' doubles event partnered with her sister, Stefani Stoeva. And at the 2013 European U-19 Championships, the sister won the gold medal.

Stoeva won her first BWF Grand Prix title at the 2014 Scottish Open in the women's doubles event with her sister. They beat Heather Olver and Lauren Smith of England in the finals round with the score 21-7 21–15. In 2015, she also won the Grand Prix tournament at the Russian and Dutch Open. Stoeva competed in the 2015 European Games, winning gold in women's doubles alongside her younger sister

In 2017, the Stoevas finished as the runner-ups at the Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold tournament, losing to the Chinese pair Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan in the straight games. The sisters also won the silver medal at the European Championships.

2018–2019: First ever Bulgarian to win the Eropean Championships title

Gabriela started the 2018 season by finished as women's doubles runner-up in the Swiss Open with her sister Stefani. They then won their first title of the year in the Orléans Masters. Competing as the second seed in the European Championship, the Stoeva took advantage of the absence of the top seed Kamilla Rytter Juhl and Christinna Pedersen, by winning their first ever European title, becoming the first Bulgarian players to win the European title since the tournament was first held in 1968. At the home soil, Bulgarian Open, she played in two events, the women's doubles with her sister, while in the mixed doubles with Jakub Bitman of Czechia. She won the women's doubles title and reached the semi-finals in the mixed doubles. The Stoeva are increasingly being considered on the BWF World Tour, as proven by their ability to reach the semi-finals at the China Open, beating top pairs such as Lee So-hee and Shin Seung-chan in the second round, and then Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan in the quarter-finals. They are increasingly successful in Europe by winning titles such as Dutch Open, SaarLorLux Open, and Scottish Open, as well being runner-up in the French Open. They then reached their career high as world number 8 in the BWF World rankings, and also closed the season ranked as number 7 in the Tour Finals rankings.

2020–2021: Second European Championships title

Gabriela and her partner Stefani were lost in the initial rounds in two opening tournaments in 2020. They lost in the first round to Chang Ye-na and Kim Hye-rin at the Indonesia Masters, and to world number 1 Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan in the Thailand Masters. The Stoeva then reached the final in the Spain Masters, losing the final to Greysia Polii and Apriyani Rahayu in a close rubber games. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, numerous tournaments on the 2020 BWF World Tour were either cancelled or rescheduled for later in the year, they then felt the atmosphere of a tournament in Sofia in October, at the Bulgarian International, where she and her partner emerged victory at that tournament. The duo then ended the season by winning the Super 100 event at the SaarLorLux Open.

The Stoevas opened the 2021 season as the finalists in the Swiss Open, losing the title to the rising Malaysian pair Pearly Tan and Thinaah Muralitharan. They then finished runner-up in the Orléans Masters this time losing to Jongkolphan Kititharakul and Rawinda Prajongjai of Thailand. The duo then clinched their first title of the year by winning their second European Championships title in Kyiv, Ukraine. The duo competed at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics but were eliminated in the group stage.

2022: 3rd European Championships title

Gabriela and her partner Stefani opened the 2022 season with quite satisfactory results, by becoming finalists in the German Open. They then won 3 consecutive tournaments, in the Swiss Open, Orléans Masters and in their third European Championships.

Gabriela and Stefani ended the year on poor form, exiting four of their final six tournaments in the first round. She stated that their partnerships were lost communication on court, only arguing, and the energy around them was pretty negative.

2023: Second European Games gold

In the first semester of 2023, Stoeva has not been able to win any single titles, as her best results with Stefani was being quarter-finalists in the Malaysia, India and the German Opens. Gabriela tried to partner with young player, Kaloyana Nalbantova, and was able to reach the quarter-finals in the Dutch International.

Gabriela and Stefani claimed their first title of the year by winning the gold medal at the European Games, beating Dutch pair Debora Jille and Cheryl Seinen in the finals. They also competed in the BWF World Championships, but had to be knocked out in the early rounds by Yeung Nga Ting and Yeung Pui Lam of Hong Kong. In the remaining tournaments in 2023, they were able to win the International Challenge titles in Scotland, Bahrain and Wales, as well as finished runner-up in the Irish Open.

2024

Stoeva won her first international title in 2024 at the Azerbaijan International. She and her partner reached the finals in the German Open, but lost to Chinese pair Li Yijing and Luo Xumin. As the defending champion at the European Championships, Stoeva unable to defend their title after lost to French pair Margot Lambert and Anne Tran in the final.

Achievements

European Games

Women's doubles

Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result
2015 Baku Sports Hall,
Baku, Azerbaijan
Stefani Stoeva Ekaterina Bolotova
Evgeniya Kosetskaya
21–12, 23–21 Gold
2023 Arena Jaskółka,
Tarnów, Poland
Stefani Stoeva Debora Jille
Cheryl Seinen
21–7, 21–17 Gold

European Championships

Women's doubles

Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result
2017 Sydbank Arena,
Kolding, Denmark
Stefani Stoeva Christinna Pedersen
Kamilla Rytter Juhl
11–21, 21–15, 11–21 Silver
2018 Palacio de los Deportes Carolina Marín,
Huelva, Spain
Stefani Stoeva Émilie Lefel
Anne Tran
21–12, 21–10 Gold
2021 Palace of Sports,
Kyiv, Ukraine
Stefani Stoeva Chloe Birch
Lauren Smith
21–14, 21–19 Gold
2022 Polideportivo Municipal Gallur,
Madrid, Spain
Stefani Stoeva Linda Efler
Isabel Lohau
21–14, 21–10 Gold
2024 Saarlandhalle,
Saarbrücken, Germany
Stefani Stoeva Margot Lambert
Anne Tran
21–16, 17–21, 11–21 Silver

European Junior Championships

Girls' doubles

Year Venue Partner Opponent Score Result
2013 ASKI Sport Hall, Ankara, Turkey Stefani Stoeva Julie Finne-Ipsen
Rikke Søby Hansen
21–11, 21–18 Gold

BWF World Tour (8 titles, 7 runners-up)

The BWF World Tour, which was announced on 19 March 2017 and implemented in 2018, is a series of elite badminton tournaments sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF). The BWF World Tour is divided into levels of World Tour Finals, Super 1000, Super 750, Super 500, Super 300 (part of the HSBC World Tour), and the BWF Tour Super 100.

Women's doubles

Year Tournament Level Partner Opponent Score Result
2018 Swiss Open Super 300 Stefani Stoeva Ayako Sakuramoto
Yukiko Takahata
21–19, 15–21, 18–21 Runner-up
2018 Orléans Masters Super 100 Stefani Stoeva Delphine Delrue
Léa Palermo
21–8, 21–14 Winner
2018 Dutch Open Super 100 Stefani Stoeva Selena Piek
Cheryl Seinen
21–17, 21–18 Winner
2018 French Open Super 750 Stefani Stoeva Mayu Matsumoto
Wakana Nagahara
14–21, 19–21 Runner-up
2018 SaarLorLux Open Super 100 Stefani Stoeva Ni Ketut Mahadewi Istarani
Rizki Amelia Pradipta
22–20, 15–21, 21–19 Winner
2018 Scottish Open Super 100 Stefani Stoeva Émilie Lefel
Anne Tran
21–16, 21–9 Winner
2019 Dutch Open Super 100 Stefani Stoeva Rin Iwanaga
Kie Nakanishi
21–10, 22–20 Winner
2020 Spain Masters Super 300 Stefani Stoeva Greysia Polii
Apriyani Rahayu
21–18, 20–22, 17–21 Runner-up
2020 SaarLorLux Open Super 100 Stefani Stoeva Amalie Magelund
Freja Ravn
21–8, 21–11 Winner
2021 Swiss Open Super 300 Stefani Stoeva Pearly Tan
Thinaah Muralitharan
19–21, 12–21 Runner-up
2021 Orléans Masters Super 100 Stefani Stoeva Jongkolphan Kititharakul
Rawinda Prajongjai
16–21, 16–21 Runner-up
2022 German Open Super 300 Stefani Stoeva Chen Qingchen
Jia Yifan
16–21, 30–29, 19–21 Runner-up
2022 Swiss Open Super 300 Stefani Stoeva Linda Efler
Isabel Lohau
21–14, 21–12 Winner
2022 Orléans Masters Super 100 Stefani Stoeva Stine Küspert
Emma Moszczyński
21–15, 21–14 Winner
2024 German Open Super 300 Stefani Stoeva Li Yijing
Luo Xumin
7–21, 21–13, 18–21 Runner-up

BWF Grand Prix (3 titles, 3 runners-up)

The BWF Grand Prix had two levels, the Grand Prix and Grand Prix Gold. It was a series of badminton tournaments sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) and played between 2007 and 2017.

Women's doubles

Year Tournament Partner Opponent Score Result
2014 Brasil Open Stefani Stoeva Johanna Goliszewski
Carla Nelte
5–11, 7–11, 11–4, 10–11 Runner-up
2014 Scottish Open Stefani Stoeva Heather Olver
Lauren Smith
21–7, 21–15 Winner
2015 Russian Open Stefani Stoeva Johanna Goliszewski
Carla Nelte
21–15, 21–17 Winner
2015 Dutch Open Stefani Stoeva Eefje Muskens
Selena Piek
24–22, 21–15 Winner
2016 Dutch Open Stefani Stoeva Setyana Mapasa
Gronya Somerville
21–17, 17–21, 16–21 Runner-up
2017 Swiss Open Stefani Stoeva Chen Qingchen
Jia Yifan
16–21, 15–21 Runner-up
  BWF Grand Prix Gold tournament
  BWF Grand Prix tournament

BWF International Challenge/Series (35 titles, 7 runners-up)

Women's doubles

Year Tournament Partner Opponent Score Result
2011 Turkiye Open Stefani Stoeva Alexandra Langley
Lauren Smith
21–14, 16–21, 21–10 Winner
2012 Banuinvest International Stefani Stoeva Sandra-Maria Jensen
Line Kjærsfeldt
19–21, 21–17, 16–21 Runner-up
2012 Bulgarian Hebar Open Stefani Stoeva Rumiana Ivanova
Dimitria Popstoikova
15–21, 21–14, 21–11 Winner
2012 Bulgarian International Stefani Stoeva Özge Bayrak
Neslihan Yiğit
21–9, 21–17 Winner
2012 Turkey International Stefani Stoeva Özge Bayrak
Neslihan Yiğit
19–21, 21–14, 23–21 Winner
2013 Bulgarian Eurasia Open Stefani Stoeva Petya Nedelcheva
Dimitria Popstoikova
11–21, 8–21 Runner-up
2013 Belgian International Stefani Stoeva Imogen Bankier
Petya Nedelcheva
21–13, 11–21, 18–21 Runner-up
2013 Bulgarian International Stefani Stoeva Eva Lee
Paula Lynn Obañana
21–15, 21–10 Winner
2013 Turkey International Stefani Stoeva Özge Bayrak
Neslihan Yiğit
21–15, 21–8 Winner
2014 Austrian International Stefani Stoeva Olga Golovanova
Viktoriia Vorobeva
21–17, 20–22, 21–15 Winner
2014 Orléans International Stefani Stoeva Imogen Bankier
Petya Nedelcheva
14–21, 7–21 Runner-up
2014 Finnish Open Stefani Stoeva Line Damkjær Kruse
Marie Røpke
17–21, 14–21 Runner-up
2014 Slovenian International Stefani Stoeva Victoria Dergunova
Olga Morozova
21–16, 21–17 Winner
2014 Spanish Open Stefani Stoeva Imogen Bankier
Kirsty Gilmour
21–14, 21–9 Winner
2014 Swiss International Stefani Stoeva Meiliana Jauhari
Aprilsasi Putri Lejarsar Variella
11–6, 11–5, 11–9 Winner
2014 Turkey International Stefani Stoeva Özge Bayrak
Neslihan Yiğit
21–11, 21–9 Winner
2015 Orléans International Stefani Stoeva Heather Olver
Lauren Smith
22–20, 16–21, 21–9 Winner
2015 Spanish International Stefani Stoeva Anastasia Chervyakova
Olga Morozova
21–16, 21–11 Winner
2015 Bulgarian International Stefani Stoeva Eva Lee
Paula Lynn Obañana
21–14, 21–10 Winner
2015 Welsh International Stefani Stoeva Heather Olver
Lauren Smith
21–10, 22–20 Winner
2015 Irish Open Stefani Stoeva Julie Finne-Ipsen
Rikke Søby Hansen
21–10, 22–24, 21–9 Winner
2015 Italian International Stefani Stoeva Setyana Mapasa
Gronya Somerville
21–19, 18–21, 13–6 retired Winner
2015 Turkey International Stefani Stoeva Özge Bayrak
Neslihan Yiğit
21–19, 21–12 Winner
2017 Bulgarian Open Stefani Stoeva Bengisu Erçetin
Nazlıcan İnci
21–16, 21–12 Winner
2018 Bulgarian Open Stefani Stoeva Amalie Magelund
Freja Ravn
21–16, 21–19 Winner
2019 Spanish International Stefani Stoeva Émilie Lefel
Anne Tran
21–8, 21–10 Winner
2019 Belgian International Stefani Stoeva Rachel Honderich
Kristen Tsai
21–16, 21–15 Winner
2019 Italian International Stefani Stoeva Ekaterina Bolotova
Alina Davletova
21–11, 21–14 Winner
2020 Bulgarian International Stefani Stoeva Maria Delcheva
Hristomira Popovska
21–8, 21–9 Winner
2023 Scottish Open Stefani Stoeva Maiko Kawazoe
Haruna Konishi
19–21, 21–11, 21–12 Winner
2023 Irish Open Stefani Stoeva Maiken Fruergaard
Sara Thygesen
19–21, 21–17, 22–24 Runner-up
2023 Bahrain International Stefani Stoeva Kokona Ishikawa
Mio Konegawa
21–19, 21–14 Winner
2023 Welsh International Stefani Stoeva Natasja P. Anthonisen
Alyssa Tirtosentono
24–22, 21–11 Winner
2024 Azerbaijan International Stefani Stoeva Catherine Choi
Josephine Wu
21–14, 21–7 Winner
2024 Bulgarian International Stefani Stoeva Tanya Ivanova
Gergana Pavlova
21–5, 21–10 Winner
2024 Dutch Open Stefani Stoeva Chloe Birch
Estelle van Leeuwen
21–15, 21–18 Winner
2024 (II) Bahrain International Stefani Stoeva Mysha Omer Khan
Taabia Khan
21–6, 21–8 Winner
2025 Iran Fajr International Stefani Stoeva Bengisu Erçetin
Nazlıcan İnci
23–21, 21–16 Winner

Mixed doubles

Year Tournament Partner Opponent Score Result
2013 Bulgaria Eurasia Open Anton Kaisti Marvin Seidel
Yvonne Li
19–21, 21–9, 21–18 Winner
2013 Turkey International Anton Kaisti Vasily Kuznetsov
Viktoriia Vorobeva
21–9, 21–15 Winner
2014 Turkey International Marcus Fernaldi Gideon Jones Ralfy Jansen
Cisita Joity Jansen
21–17, 17–21, 12–21 Runner-up
2024 (I) Bahrain International Evgeni Panev Aakash Ravikumar
Sakshi Kurbkhelgi
21–14, 21–18 Winner
  BWF International Challenge tournament
  BWF International Series tournament
  BWF Future Series tournament

References

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