Ude and Srbić Ready for Home European Championship
More than 600 gymnasts from 43 countries will compete at Zagreb Arena from August 13, with organizers also preparing musical performances alongside the sports program.
More than 600 gymnasts from 43 countries will compete at Zagreb Arena from August 13, with organizers also preparing musical performances alongside the sports program.
Three days before the start of the European Gymnastics Championship, the Croatian Gymnastics Federation and the Croatian Sports Museum signed a cooperation agreement. On that occasion, HGS president Marijo Možnik presented museum director Danira Bilić with a set of medals that will be awarded at the competition and will become part of the museum's collection.
Director Bilić emphasized the importance of this partnership for young athletes. "This agreement should establish a practice where young gymnasts come to the museum and learn about the history of gymnastics and sport in general, so they remain motivated on their athletic journey," she stated.
Možnik, whose bronze medal from the 2014 World Championships is already among the exhibits, highlighted the Federation's dual responsibility. "Besides creating new results, it is our duty and responsibility to preserve the memories of successes in Croatian sport, in our specific case, gymnastics. Through this collaboration, we will aim to connect the past, present, and future of Croatian gymnastics," Možnik said.
The museum already features the achievements of two Olympic silver medalists for Croatia, still-active gymnasts Filip Ude and Tin Srbić. Ude won silver on pommel horse in Beijing 2008, while Srbić is a silver medalist on high bar from Tokyo. "Maybe I'll decide to lend my medal to the museum so people can see it. At home, it's just collecting dust," Ude joked.
Both gymnasts are set to compete next week at the home European Championship in Zagreb Arena. The 40-year-old Ude revealed that due to a shoulder injury, he will compete under special circumstances. "Honestly, if this European Championship were held anywhere else, I wouldn't compete but would have surgery on my injured shoulder. However, in my mind, it was worth risking a more severe injury because I couldn't miss the chance to perform on home turf. My only goal is to give my maximum," Ude stated.
On the other hand, Srbić has clear expectations in front of his fellow citizens. "It's a great honor and pleasure that such a big competition will take place in my city while I'm still active. All my people have already bought tickets for the finals; they're not interested in qualifications. If I do my routine well in qualifications, I should make it to the final, and then it's a fight for a medal," he announced.
Možnik invited all sports fans to visit the Arena and emphasized that this edition of the European Championship will be record-breaking. "This will be a record European Championship in terms of the number of competitors, with more than 600 coming from 43 different countries. Come to the Arena with your family and spend a few pleasant hours. Besides a top-tier sports event, we've also prepared musical content with performances by Mia Dimšić, Ana Rucner, and Baby Lasagna," he said.
Due to the arena's reconfiguration, which includes a fenced-off training area in addition to the competition space, the Arena's capacity has been reduced to 5,000 seats.
