A da Ciganlija, around nine o’clock in the morning. We arrive for an arranged interview with Filip Fil- ipović in one of the cafés beside Lake Sava. Precise to the minute, the cap- tain of Serbia’s water polo team arrives. This is a man who has won everything with his teammates in the national team of Serbia. As the proper leader of the generation that won its fourth consecutive European cham- pionship title in Barcelona in July, he puts the team first – the one that conquered the Europe and the world. He tells us about his beginnings, about his beloved Partisan, motivation, modesty as the greatest virtue, Novak Đoković, Bel- grade and Serbia, role models, success etc.
- What is now a long time back in the year 2000, as a 13-year-old, I played for Par- tizan. When you’re a child you dream big dreams, so I can’t say that I didn’t dream of one day being the best in the world. But they were boyhood dreams, far from reality. The only thing I’d mapped out then, as a little boy, was that I would give my all to reach my goal. I consider that hard work, sacri- fice and dedication have led me to where I am today,” says Filip. It was Ivo Andrić who wrote that all true lives are beautiful and tough, and Filipov- ić agrees that during his brilliant career he had moments when he considered quitting. - There were difficult moments, to be honest, but overcoming them only made
me stronger. If I’d given up when I was hes- itant, everything would have been differ- ent. I had lots of situations that forced me to consider, but they all gave me the strength to face some upcoming challenges. Speaking with a man whose trophy cabinet isn’t missing a single cup that he could have won, we get the impression that he is extremely modest. - I don’t think that’s a matter of choice, but rather personality. Regardless of all the successes, we remained modest and haven’t changed so far. And while things are going as well as they are for us, that would be the worst possible moment for us to change. Serbia’s water polo players have care- fully formed themselves over all these years
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