P obedivši u svih šest mečeva u Tokiju, srp- ska karatistkinja je došla do zlatne meda- lje, a onda je na postolju uradila nešto što njene suparnice nisu očekivale. Kada su sve primile medalje, a himna Srbije ozva- ničila da je naša olimpijka najbolja u kategoriji do 61 kilograma, Jovana Preković je pružila ruku i pozva- la ostale devojke s pobedničkog postolja da joj se u tome pridruže. Jovanin ispružen dlan bio je poziv koji će se u olimpijskom, a pre svega ljudskom smislu dugo pam- titi. Ta njena ljudskost, ta svest o važnosti zajedniš- tva, veća je i važnija od bilo koje medalje… – Pre nego što sam krenula u Japan, rekla sam da sam otišla samo na takmičenje. Međutim, kada sam stigla, promenili su mi se utisci. Dobila sam drugačiju energiju, pozitivnu, koja mi je dala snagu da izdržim i popnem se na krov – rekla je olimpijska šampionka. Ova fantastična devojka je pitomac Vojne akade- mije Srbije i pripadnica Sportske jedinice Ministar- stva odbrane i Vojske Srbije, ali i aktuelna evropska šampionka jer je u maju na kontinentalnom prven- stvu osvojila zlatnu medalju, čime je samo potvrdi- la izborenu vizu za Olimpijske igre. Rođena 1996. godine u Aranđelovcu, još 2018. godine je oduševila naciju kada je na Svetskom prvenstvu osvojila zla- to. Aktivno se takmiči od 2012, a dosad je nanizala pet zlatnih, dve srebrne i sedam bronzanih meda- lja. Kruna cele njene dosadašnje karijere je, narav- no, olimpijsko zlato u Tokiju. Vratila se iz Tokija sa najsjajnijim odličjem oko vrata i ušla u istoriju kao naša prva olimpijska šampionka u karateu She returned from Tokyo with the shiniest medal around her neck and went down in history as our first Olympic champion in karate
A fter winning all six of her bouts in Tokyo, Serbia’s lady karate champion won gold, and then did something on the podium that her rivals didn’t expect. When every- one had received their medals and the sounds of the Serbian national anthem made it offi- cial that our Olympian was the best in the category up to 61 kilograms, Jovana Preković extended her hand and invited the other girls from the podium to join her. Jovana’s outstretched palm was an invitation that will be remembered, in an Olympic sense, but primar- ily in a human sense, for a long time to come. Her hu- manity, her awareness of the importance of together- ness, is bigger and more important than any medal… “Before I headed to Japan, I said that I was only going for the competition. However, my impressions changed when I arrived. I got a different energy, posi- tive, which gave me the strength to endure and climb to the summit,” said this Olympic champion. This fantastic girl is a cadet at the Military Acade- my of Serbia and a member of the Sports Unit of the Ministry of Defence and the Serbian Army, but she’s also the current European champion, after having won gold at the continental championships in May, which only confirmed that she’d fought her way to a visa for the Olympics. Born in Aranđelovac in 1996, she first delighted the nation when she won gold
Jovana Preković
at the 2018 World Champion- ships. She has been competing actively since 2012 and has to date won five golds, two silvers and seven bronze medals. The crowning glory of her career to date is, of course, Olympic gold in Tokyo.
Olympic games» Olimpijske Igre | 103
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