FAREWELL AT HOME: Serbia’s strongest athlete announces retirement from professional sport!

World-class shot putter and Serbian athletics trophy winner, Asmir Kolašinac, will take his final competitive throw at the ‘Gold Belgrade Indoor Meeting’ on January 29, 2025.

This prestigious tournament will be the farewell competition for Serbian national team member Asmir Kolašinac, marking the end of his 20-year long, incredibly rich career during which he left a golden mark on the history of Serbian athletics.

With numerous medals and achievements, he will forever be remembered as a great sports athlete with a big heart, an athlete who always gave his all on the field and remained dedicated to the path he chose. He did the same outside of sports, always willingly participating in humanitarian work and actions, contributing to helping others.

At the 2012 European Championships in Helsinki, Asmir won a bronze medal with a throw of 20.36 meters. A year later, he became European champion, winning the gold medal at the European Indoor Championships in Gothenburg, while in 2015 he won silver at the European Indoor Championships in Prague. He represented Serbia four times at the Olympic Games (Beijing 2008, London 2012, Rio de Janeiro 2016, and Tokyo 2020).

“Right now, my feelings are mixed. I’m sad that one chapter is ending. Athletics has been my life and it’s hard to leave it all now. But biology is like that. We can’t stay young forever and it’s time to retire. I chose the ‘Belgrade Indoor Meeting’ because it’s our strongest competition and I wanted to say goodbye in front of the home crowd. I hope I don’t cry,” said Kolašinac.

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His plans regarding staying in athletics are not yet clear, but his life plans are:

“I haven’t decided yet. There are a few directions I’m considering at the moment, but I think the most important thing for me now is to start a family, and of course, athletics will always be a part of me and I will help anyone who asks me.”

Throwing disciplines are a family legacy for Asmir:

“I have many fond memories of the beginning of my career. That was when I was in elementary school. The first medals at those competitions somehow left an indelible mark, and probably instilled a love for athletics that still lasts today. Shot put is my legacy that I inherited from my father and my grandfather, who also threw the shot put, so that love was passed down from generation to generation.”

He will remember, he says, the medals, but also the challenges, and the biggest challenge was the injuries that neither avoided nor spared him.

Asmir Kolašinac is ending his career in Belgrade in two weeks, and we hope with the great support of the fans that he deserves.