The beginning of the work of the Biathlon Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina was solemnly marked
Last night, in the Olympic Museum in Sarajevo, which permanently preserves the memory of the organization of one of the biggest sports events held in Southeastern Europe – the XIV Winter Olympic Games in Sarajevo, the official start of the work of the Biathlon Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina was held.
The establishment of the federation represents a significant step in promoting biathlon, a sport that combines cross-country skiing and shooting, and provides an opportunity for further development of talented athletes from all over the country. Bosnia and Herzegovina is now among the majority of the 62 countries of the International Biathlon Union (IBU) that have their own independent federations.
The current head coach of the biathlon national team of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Tomislav Lopatić, a member of the biathlon team that represented Yugoslavia at the Winter Olympic Games in Sarajevo in 1984 and in Albertville in 1992, addressed the audience first.
He emphasized that the establishment of the federation represents a big step for Bosnia and Herzegovina and a strong foundation for success in international competitions, and that it will imply a better flow of information and control of financial resources.
Three-time Olympian in biathlon and cross-country skiing, participant in numerous international competitions, Tanja Karišik Košarac expressed her satisfaction with the founding of the Biathlon Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, stressing that this umbrella organization, apart from the organization of numerous competitions, will certainly provide athletes with better working conditions, and thus better results of domestic biathletes can be expected.”The Federation certainly plans to continuously promote biathlon as a discipline, because it is currently unequally neglected, while in other countries of the world it is one of the most popular sports,” said Karisik Košarac. Through a video message, the president of International Biathlon Union IBU Mr. Ole Dalin sent a congratulatory message on the occasion of the founding of the national biathlon federation.The general secretary of the BiH Olympic Committee Dr. Sci. Said Fazlagić, as well as the mayor of Sarajevo, Predrag Puharić, greeted those present, wishing the local biathletes success in future competitions around the world. He expressed the hope that this moment for Bosnian sports will be recognized by all those who can and should help the development of sports in our country.
Addressing the audience, the president of the newly formed Biathlon Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ljubiša Tanić, pointed out that what sets Bosnia and Herzegovina apart from most countries in the region is a relatively good infrastructure with Nordic ski centers in Dvorišta, Jahorina, and Veliko Polje on Igman, which still need to be developed in order to be able to compete at the highest international level.”One of the main goals of the federation will be the promotion of biathlon in other parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina that have the opportunity, such as Vlašić, Kupres, and Manjaca in future, in order to increase the quality of competitors,” said Tanić.The event was attended by numerous distinguished guests, former biathletes, coaches and sports workers.
