On October 11th 1931 45 skiers established the first ski club in Samokov “Rilski Skier” for the  “development of the ski sport in Samokov and the neighboring villages”. In January next year the first cross country race was held. The race course was the road from Borovets to Sokolets, then down to Pashanitsa and the finish at the Tourist Garden in Samokov. Ten years later "Rilski Skier" is at the top of Bulgarian ski sport and Samokov becomes the main center in the country for the practice of snow sports. The performance of the Samokov skiers is expected with great interest in all major events at that time. Without them the race was considered uninteresting.