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Vlado Paradžik

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Vlado Paradžik
Personal information
NationalityBosnian
Born (1967-02-21) 21 February 1967 (age 58)
Vogošća, Yugoslavia
Sport
SportJudo

Vlado Paradžik (born 21 February 1967) is a Bosnian judoka. He competed in the men's extra-lightweight event at the 1992 Summer Olympics.

Biography

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Paradžik was born on 21 February 1967 in Vogošća, Yugoslavia.[1][2] He began practicing judo in 1974 and competed in Yugoslavia and then Bosnia and Herzegovina.[3] He was a bronze medalist at the cadet national championships in 1982, a silver medalist at the junior national championships in 1987, and a bronze medalist at the senior national championships in 1989.[4] When the Bosnian War started in 1992, the 25-year-old Paradžik was part of the front-line defense for the city of Sarajevo and served in a police paramilitary unit.[5]

At the same time, Paradžik continued training in judo, being selected to represent Bosnia and Herzegovina for the 1992 Summer Olympics, the country's first participation at the games.[5][6] Due to the war, every gymnasium in the region was destroyed, and thus he trained for the Olympics in a basement on mattresses, having only one training partner.[5][7] A few weeks before the Olympics, he was given leave from his paramilitary unit to train full-time.[5] Amid the war, there was a scarcity of food, and thus in trying to "bulk up" for the games, he lost 11 pounds (5.0 kg).[7] With the Olympics approaching, Paradžik remained in Sarajevo and it was uncertain whether he would be able to make it to the games, held in Barcelona, Spain.[5] Shortly before the Olympics were to take place, he and the other Bosnian Olympic selections were escorted by the United Nations Protection Force to an airport, where a special plane chartered by the International Olympic Committee waited.[8][9] After arriving at the airport, the plane was stuck as grenades were exploding nearby the runway.[9] After a six-hour delay, the plane took off and arrived in Barcelona three hours before the opening Olympic ceremony.[9] At the Olympics, Paradžik competed in the men's extra-lightweight event, being defeated in his first fight and finishing tied for 23rd.[10]

After the Olympics, Paradžik moved to Sweden due to the war.[3] He continued being active in judo, serving as the head coach and later chairman of the Södertälje Judo Club.[3] By 2018, he was living in the Swedish town of Södertälje with his wife, three daughters and son.[6]

References

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  1. ^ "Vlado Paradžik". Olymedia.org.
  2. ^ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Vlado Paradžik Olympic Results". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 27 May 2018.
  3. ^ a b c "Södertälje Judoklubb vill hjälpa till att skapa ett bättre samhälle för alla barn, unga och vuxna" [Södertälje Judo Club wants to help create a better society for all children, young people and adults.]. rfsisu.se (in Swedish). 2 November 2022.
  4. ^ "Vlado Paradzik". JudoInside.com.
  5. ^ a b c d e Crary, David (10 July 1992). "Olympic hopeful runs scared in battle zone". The Duluth News Tribune. Associated Press. p. 17 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  6. ^ a b Dedić, Midhat (12 October 2018). "Prvi olimpijci BiH: Živi, zdravi i zaboravljeni" [The first Olympians of BiH: Alive, healthy and forgotten] (in Bosnian). Al Jazeera Balkans.
  7. ^ a b Lopresti, Mike (1 August 1992). "Some athletes had a perilous road to Olympics". USA Today. p. 31 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  8. ^ "BOSNIAN IN TRAINING, RUNNING FOR HER LIFE". The Washington Post. 27 July 1992 – via archive.today.
  9. ^ a b c Farber, Michael (30 July 1992). "Runner races for finish to civil war". Edmonton Journal. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  10. ^ "Extra-Lightweight". Olympedia.org.
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