The Seattle rowing community, and indeed much of the global rowing community, including both US and Canadian national teams, as well as the Bulgarian rowing communities along with many others, mourn the passing of one of its brightest stars. Emil Kossev died peacefully on Monday September 15, 2008. Fighting until the end, he lost his battle with Clear Cell Sarcoma, a rare form of cancer.

Born in Gabrovo, Bulgaria and a graduate of the Bulgaria's National Sports Academy in Sofia, Emil pursued a life in the sport of rowing. He was a four-time Bulgarian national team member and won thirteen Bulgarian national sculling titles between 1982 and 1991. He was a recipient of Bulgaria's Master of the Sport Award in Rowing, granted for lifetime accomplishments in the sport. Although he was an accomplished athlete, it was as a coach that Emil would make his mark in the sport.

In 1992 Emil traveled to the United States to pursue a career in coaching. After initially settling in Everett, WA he moved to Seattle, WA and founded a High Performance training program at the Pocock Rowing Center. Starting with a handful of dedicated athletes Emil built a modern-day, high performance training program that integrated his unique performance technology expertise, rigorous physiological training and high quality technical instruction. He coached twenty-eight crews to medals in elite international competition including a bronze at the 2004 World Championships, two silver and two bronze medals at the 2003 Pan American Games and gold in the men's single sculls at the 2000 Olympic Qualification Regatta and gold in the men's single sculls at the 2000 Slovakian Olympic Trials. His athletes also placed first in the men's single sculls at the 2004 U.S. Olympic Trials and women's single sculls at the 2000 U.S. Olympic Trials.

In 2005, Emil was nominated for the prestigious United States Olympic Committee's 'Doc' Counsilman Science Award in recognition of his practical application of sport science and technical video analysis in the training of high-performance rowers.

In 2007 Emil made a decision to leave day-to-day coaching. Although he never severed his ties with the Pocock program, he took the position of Performance Technology Advisor with Podium Canada in their Road To Excellence initiative. He was responsible for providing mentoring support to Canada's targeted summer sports as part of their preparations for the 2008 Olympic Games. He also played a role in educating technical staff in the areas of applied high performance technology and advanced video systems.

In his commitment to rowing, performance technology, and research-based training, Emil changed the landscape of rowing in the Northwest. With all of his success he remained humble and continually strove to find ways to integrate and apply technological tools to enhance performance and increase speed.

Emil's life was not always about coaching elite athletes. He had a profound influence on athletes of all ages and abilities. He was an advocate and coach for numerous masters scullers. As his career progressed he became a mentor for other coaches in the community, building on the long traditions of the sport's success in the Northwest. In his short time he made so many friends across North America. He was loyal and generous; he never returned from trips without gifts. From T-shirts and hats to pens and snow-globes he always found a fun memento to brighten your day. He always made time for coffee dates. He had the ability to be sensitive when an a friend or athlete needed someone to listen and conversely knew exactly "how and when to turn a whiner to the mirror to move on with it." He made many stronger mentally and physically because he believed in them even when they may not have, one of the greatest gifts a coach could employ. Emil was inspiring, creative and fun loving and he will be missed greatly. His friends will continue to treasure his memory and his impact on sculling in the region and throughout the United States will be felt for generations.

In memory of Emil donations may be made to The George Pocock Rowing Foundation's Kossev Endowment, 3320 Fuhrman Avenue E., Seattle, WA 98102. The Foundation has established this endowment to honor Emil's legacy as a visionary and coach.

A memorial to celebrate Emil's life will be held on September 27 in Seattle. More information will be available at www.pocockrowing.org.