A member of Bosnia’s sitting volleyball national team told N1 that for years, he and his teammates are “playing out of love” for the sport, although the state could be a lot more supportive. The team returned to Bosnia on Tuesday after winning the silver medal at the 2018 sitting volleyball world championship in the Netherlands last week.

“When we were at the competition in the Netherlands, our diaspora told us, ‘there is no reason for us to watch you, as we know you will win gold’,” team member Mirzet Duran said. “Of course, this put a kind of pressure on us.”

Duran said he began training in 2003, “and within three years I was invited to join the national team,” he said.  

The sport changed his life for the better, but Duran is not sure if sitting volleyball can be described as a professional sport.  

“Most competitors have other jobs,” he said, explaining that in Bosnia, one can hardly live just from sport.  

Duran expressed gratitude for the support the team had from the Government of the Sarajevo Canton, the Government of the Federation, one of the two semi-autonomous entities in the country, and from certain companies.

However, he said that those engaged in sports should have a bigger incentive.  

“We aim to give more than we get,” he said, explaining that neighbouring Croatia supports its team a lot more, but is a lot less successful.  

“Their only problem is that they don’t have great success. We play for years out of love,” he said.  

Duran, who has a masters degree in sports, said that sport is a very important factor in preventing many problems in society, especially in preventing underage crimes.  

“When people say that a child needs to be engaged in a sport so it is kept away from the street, that is truly the case. I know this from my own experience. Sport kept me off the street. I invested my time in sport,” he said.    

“This is why I suggest that children get engaged in sports, as this is the path toward success,” he concluded.