Ninth-grader Boyan Ivanov from the Vocational School of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering and Electronics (PGMEE) in Burgas won the top prize in the "Bike Friday" campaign, a new bicycle, after riding 649 km. The prizes were handed out on Saturday, 14 November, at the Flora Exhibition Centre.
Pupils who cycled or walked to school logged 9,171 km in total and saved 1,375 kg of carbon emissions. They recorded their rides in the WeRide.today app. Svetoslav Mitev of the Burgas Cycling Community, which supplied the data, says the aim is to get children moving more every day and to have fewer cars outside schools.
"Bike Friday" began in April 2026, with a special focus on Fridays. The first stage ran from 24 April to 30 June, and the second from 15 September to 30 October. Over the summer holiday the campaign went on as "Bike Summer", with rides around the city and its surroundings. With those rides, the winner's total reached 3,735 km. A total of 87 pupils signed up in the app, but more took part, because some of the younger children rode without signing up and without a phone of their own.
The ceremony was dedicated to pupils who chose to get to school by bike or on foot, and to the parents and teachers who support them. Deputy mayor for education, health, social affairs and youth policy Mihail Nenov, Pavel Velichkov of WeRide.today and Georgi Ivanov of Bike Centre presented the prizes. Bike Centre, which prepared the bicycle specially for the winner, supplied it. There were also Decathlon vouchers, a bicycle repair kit from the "Burgas: Nature on Wheels" project, consolation prizes from WeRide.today and certificates with ride data for both stages.
Nenov also gave certificates of merit to the most active schools, including the Brothers Miladinovi Primary School, the St Prince Boris I Primary School, PGMEE, the St Kliment Ohridski Primary School and the Freinet private primary school.
On 10 November we reported that the prizes in the "Bike Friday" campaign would be handed out on 14 November at the Flora Exhibition Centre by deputy mayor Mihail Nenov. We said then that 87 pupils had signed up in the app, and that the School of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering and Electronics was among the most active.
The campaign is part of the "Burgas: Nature on Wheels" project, which the TELUS Digital Bulgaria Community Board foundation funds. The Burgas Cycling Community, the Bulgarian Biodiversity Foundation – Strandzha branch, and Burgas council organise it. Radostina Tsenova of the foundation says 10 training sessions on safe and responsible cycling have been held in different Burgas schools. There have been five bike trips: to Lake Atanasovsko, along the Avocet Trail, to the Poda Protected Area Centre, and twice to Chengene Skele and back by boat. Bike racks are already in place at the Vasil Aprilov Primary School and at the Hristo Botev Primary School in the village of Marinka. Racks will go up tomorrow at the P. R. Slaveykov Primary School.