The best Croatian gymnast Tin Srbić, the winner of the silver medal at the recently ended European Championship in Poland, will lead alongside his protege Robert Seligman the strong Croatian national team at the 11th edition of the DOBRO World Osijek.
Tin’s last three seasons were as if from a dream. He is only 22, but he is already known as the winner of a gold medal in High bar, as well for numerous other medals. In 2017 Tin achieved the greatest success in the history of Croatian gymnastics by winning the gold medal at the World Championship in Montreal. Last year he came in fourth at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championship in Doha, which was his second World Championship. Just over two weeks ago Srbić won his first European medal, which was a silver one. So far he has won 12 medals at the World Cup Tournaments, out of which 5 are gold, 3 silver, and 4 bronze. He won three of the overall number of medals in front of a home audience in Osijek (2 gold medals in 2017 and 2018, and a bronze medal in 2016). After winning the gold medal last year, he is returning to the Arena Gradski vrt to confirm his title of the European vice-champion.
• Osijek is the first competition after the European Championship in Poland and winning the silver medal. What does the competition means to you?
– Yes, the first competition after the European Championship and it’s Osijek. The initial euphoria about winning the medal has calmed down so I can now face new competitions and challenges. Honestly, if it were any other competition in question I would not be performing, but I can’t miss this one. Over the last ten years, I have been sick probably because of the tours to Australia, Azerbaijan, Qatar and Poland which left their mark. But, as I said earlier, I can’t miss this. It’s Osijek, my Croatia, and I simply adore performing here.
• Why is Osijek so special to you? Do you have a particular memory that you would single out?
– This is a very simple question. Osijek is special to me because of the audience in front of which I adore performing. I feel at home here. I have performed in many grand world halls, but home is home and it can’t be compared to anything. And the organization itself is here the best out of all the World Cups, and that is a fact! I have won two gold medals here and I have nice memories related to the Arena Gradski vrt. Here I won some of my first great medals. The best memory I can single out is simply being here. I really enjoy being in Osijek, so I would say that is my favorite memory.
• What are you preparing for the World Cup in Osijek? Will you be performing the routine that got you the silver medal in Szczecin or something else?
– Honestly, I still don’t know what I will perform at the World Cup in Osijek. Now I will spend at least a week in Požega, where I have to finish my military training, so I am not really sure how much I will be able to train. I don’t know what shape I will be before the competition, so I can’t say anything for certain. Perhaps I will perform an easier routine. However, I am certain I will not come to Osijek simply to participate in the competition. I will try my best as I always have.
• What do you think about the competition that will be this year in Osijek? What can the home audience expect?
– Once more there will be a lot of gymnasts, and a lot of new names which I hadn’t had the chance to meet yet, so it will definitely be interesting as it is always.
