The silver Olympic medalist from Beijing, on the same date, August 17, completes his final training session ahead of qualifications at the European Championships in Zagreb, despite a shoulder injury.
On this day in 2008, August 17, Croatian gymnastics made history. Filip Ude, then a 22-year-old from Čakovec, won the silver medal on the pommel horse at the 29th Summer Olympics in Beijing, bringing Croatia its first Olympic gymnastics medal. His routine earned a score of 15.725, and the excitement was such that more than 10,000 people welcomed him at the central square in Čakovec.
After the medal in Beijing, things took an upward trajectory for Croatian gymnastics. Then came accolades from global and continental competitions, and other members of the Croatian national team also appeared on the podiums of the biggest events. Ude broke the ice, and now no major gymnastics gathering passes without Croatian gymnasts achieving notable results, as reported by Međimurje Press.
Eighteen years later, on the same date, the popular Fićo is still doing what he does best-training and competing at the highest level of gymnastics. A member of the Marijan Zadravec Macan Gymnastics Club, he is putting the finishing touches on his apparatus training before the qualifications at the European Gymnastics Championships being held in Zagreb.
Although he turned 40 two months ago, the best athlete of Čakovec and Međimurje is not giving up. Together with coaches Mario Vukoja and Igor Kriajimski, he recreated the famous photo from the Chinese capital. In the shot at Zagreb Arena, more wrinkles are noticeable, but the infectious optimism of all three remains, as if to say that everything is still possible.
In addition to recalling the success from nearly two decades ago, the silver Olympian learned that he is officially the oldest active gymnast in the world.
"I don't think much about age. I focus on performing my routine in the qualifications on Wednesday in front of our fans as best I can," Filip Ude told Međimurje Press.
Humble yet dedicated, because if Croatia weren't hosting the competition of the best from the Old Continent, he would have already undergone shoulder surgery. As it stands, he risks the possibility of further injury, but as he has stated several times, nothing will stop him from "mounting" the horse once more. This time, in front of a home crowd.
