Zrinka - the good spirit of student championships

 

EUSA Combat Championship is getting closer and closer and we are very excited we can slowly introduce you all with our participants and dearest volunteers. First of them is our Zrinka Tabain, student at the University of Zagreb, professional karate kid and student sport volunteer for many years. You can read her story below and be sure that Zrinka is going to be a beautiful host.

How did your karate story begin?

Actually it was because of the doctor recommendation. In primary school, I had some troubles with my back, and water jumps (I have trained then) wasn’t helping at all. The doctor told me kata is the perfect choice for my problem (there are kate and kumite disciplines in karate) and I’m training it since then. It’s been 10 years now.

Are there some competitions you are proudest of?

There were several state competitions and local competitions in Zagreb where I won gold, silver and bronze medal. As part of the Croatian national team, I competed in Balcan championship in Sofia in 2014. Me and my colleagues from Karate club Bushido few times won a third place as a team on senior state competition. I love all of those championships as same as several international tournaments and student competitions (I had some success there also), but if I have to chose the dearest, it would definitly be bronze medal in category of young seniors on the international competition Grand Prix Croatia in Samobor.

When talking about student championships, I won two gold and one bronze at the University of Zagreb, two bronze medals at the student state championship in Croatia and was part of the EUG Zagreb - Rijeka 2016. Sadly, this year I have an injury so I won’t be part of EUSA Combat, but I’m coming as a volunteer.

You started a great topic now. You have rich volunteer experiences, can you say something about them?

My first experience was on EUG Zagreb - Rijeka immediately after I finished with competing part. Davis Cup 2016 in Zagreb and triple EUSA championship in Split (3x3, beach volleyball and sports climbing) followed after that and FISU World handball championship in Rijeka last summer was most recent. This year, as I already said, I’m going to be a part of both EUSA beach handball and EUSA Combat games. Can’t wait for the second one. Next year I’m already reserved for FISU World rowing championship also in Zagreb.

Fascinating, but those are not the only volunteer activities you had. What about the FISU academy?

Yes, in 2018., I’ve got the chance to represent Croatia on the 2nd edition of FISU Volunteer Leadership Academy in Kazan, Russia. The academy gathered 111 young people from 92 different countries with whom I’ve worked on various tasks building the project. During the 10 days, we listened to lectures and did workshops lead by the experts in sport and volunteer management, media, communication and education. Also, we had a chance to hear successful organizations like EUSA, WADA, FIFA and others and their approach in sports. This kind of academy is really the perfect opportunity to share experience, develop new knowledge, skills and ideas and get to know different cultures from all over the world.

And the sweatest question for the end...what do students sport represent to you?

One word: opportunity. The opportunity for personal development both as volunteer or sportsman and the opportunity to be a part of something greater than yourself. In every aspect of student sport, the person grows and learns something new. I think that student sport is also for ones that weren’t professional sportsman before or had any previous experiences as a volunteer. On every student competition, you can meet people with different backgrounds, habits, different parts of the world and you have a chance to make unforgettable memories and friendships. For me, it is the most important thing and more important than any grade or diploma. You develop soft and communication skills, independence, creativity with solving the problems and leadership skills. Student sport offer a lot of opportunities, you just have to set on.