Her name is synonymous with the first athletic successes of Montenegrin sports. She was the first to win a big medal by winning the World Junior Championship in Moncton, Canada in 2010, the first to win the A Olympic standard in our athletics and the first to reach the finals of the Olympic Games. The name Marija Vuković is, in a word, synonymous with the Montenegrin "queen of sports".
With the best result in the Montenegrin sports team at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, 9th place in the high jump with a jump of 196 centimeters, Marija became the first athlete to be recognized as the best athlete of Montenegro. She celebrated in the selection of the Montenegrin Olympic Committee, 11 years after she was the best young athlete of Montenegro for the second time in a row. Then, in Canada, the Montenegrin national anthem was played at the World Junior Championship after she jumped 191 centimeters.
"I am really overjoyed, but also pleasantly surprised by the support, attention and popularity after the Olympic Games in Tokyo. I realized that the eyes of the entire country were on me, that everyone was cheering and hoping for my best jump. I thought that such popularity here was reserved for the tradition of team sports... It seemed to me that if I opened the refrigerator, my character would pop out. Indeed, the result I achieved has been wildly applauded, and I am overjoyed. It was my dream to compete under the Montenegrin flag for a performance in the final of the Olympic Games, and I achieved it," the 29-year-old athlete told the New Year's issue of "Vijesti".
Marija proved her enormous potential in the younger age categories, so a year before Moncton and the world title, she was the European vice-champion in Novi Sad, when she was chosen for the first time as the best young athlete of Montenegro. However, it took more than a decade for her to shine on the senior stage for her first appearance at the Olympic Games and the realization of the dreams of all female athletes.
"At the last competition scored for the OI, the Balkaniad in Smederevo, I jumped over the personal and national record of 197 centimeters and won the performance in Tokyo. I felt great, I had a result of 193 centimeters in training before the Balkan Championship and I knew I could do it. Usually, the adrenaline during the competition makes you jump over the bar about five centimeters higher. I succeeded, and then I fulfilled my second dream - the final of the Olympic Games in Tokyo. My coach, the Greek Joana Siomu, just told me at the Olympics: 'Enjoy yourself, you are here in the company of the best and enjoy what you are doing'. That took the pressure off me and I succeeded," sums up Marija Vuković's impressions.
She soon realized what a success she had made...
"The fact that Novak Djokovic, who is a world sports icon, posted on my Instagram profile immediately after qualifying for the final was a reliable sign that I was on the right track. Then came an invitation to participate in the Diamond Athletics League in Paris, which is the equivalent of the Champions League in football, but I had to miss it because of the corona and be in isolation for 14 days. But I don't regret it, I was still under the impression of the final in Tokyo and at that moment everything was different for me, at least in terms of sports".
Five years earlier, Marija failed to qualify for the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, as she was "a week late" with the jump to qualify. However, he does not regret it, on the contrary...
"Honestly, I was happy! I jumped 196 centimeters in Berane and that was the trigger for me. A sign that I'm finally on the right path, and I didn't even think about the Olympic Games, at that time it was on the back burner. After years of stagnation, training more out of habit than high expectations, that result awakened hope in me. A new desire. Of course, it was not easy again. Going to Luxembourg and Sweden didn't turn out to be the right decisions, but that's why Athens is. If it hadn't been for the corona break that year, I think my progress would have started even earlier. This season, in addition to the personal and national record in Smederevo, I also broke the indoor record when I was seventh at the European Championship with a jump of 193 centimeters, along with several victories at meetings and the Balkaniad," Marija points out.
The offer from Greece, meanwhile, was also a positive trigger.
"I decided for Athens, for the first time I had a woman as a coach, and for a symbolic amount. Now, of course, that will change, but I was promised greater support from the Athletics Association and the Montenegrin Olympic Committee, and it, like my parents and sister Jovana, never failed. Admittedly, I've never used supplements or anything that would require extra money either. Just the usual diet”.
Coach Joana Siomu didn't change too much...
"Technically nothing, everyone mostly does the same thing. However, she was able to listen to what I wanted. There was no talk about kilograms and she accepted that I jump at higher heights during training. Now, for the first time in my senior career, I have no problems with my weight and I can devote myself to technical training and explosiveness. I consider that I am in my best years, I aim for two meters and Paris as the crown of my career", concludes Marija.
From school class with Ivo Popović to Tokyo
From the school classroom and class with Ivo Popović, to the Olympic Games in Tokyo and dreams for Paris in 2024.
This is how, in a nutshell, the path of the best Montenegrin athlete Marija Vuković could be described. In between, a real series could be made.
"I fell in love with high jump in class, and that talent was discovered by my teacher in Cetinje and determined my life's vocation. I didn't give up out of love and when I had doubts, I was in a dilemma whether it was worth continuing... Especially after Moncton and the world gold, everyone was expecting medals, including myself. I didn't succeed despite all my personal expectations to qualify for London, then for Rio... I think the problem is that I had to break through the ice, and the system didn't exist. Now I see it differently for young people, because sports psychology came into play, and at that time no one around me understood the changes in the body during growing up. Going to Bulgaria didn't help, on the contrary, but Novi Sad was relaxing for me, because at the same time as training, I enrolled and completed higher vocational studies for a teacher. It really is my city, and I went to the training sessions feeling relieved", says Marija Vuković.
A better future for the "queen of sports"
Breaking the ice in a sport without a great tradition in Montenegro is a challenge that Marija Vuković accepted. The future of the "Queen of Sports" can only be better.
"We are all eagerly waiting for the athletics stadium to finally be built in Podgorica, as well as the infrastructure in other cities. After Tokyo, I was greeted by confessions that many girls demand their fathers install slats for them to jump over the bed. And the knowledge of young coaches has been updated with new scientific disciplines, and we have talent," Marija points out.
Do you want to try your hand at being a coach in the future?
"I am absolutely focused on my sports goals because injuries bypassed me and I think I can still give a lot. Admittedly, I realize that I want to pass on some of my knowledge to younger people, and I would like to meet Irene Bošković, a Mojkovic woman from Tara, in Bar. She is very talented and I think some of my advice would be useful for her".
Did you lack advice?
"Mostly yes, because the relationship between competitors is different than between coaches. Nevertheless, Blanka Vlašić, my sports role model, helped me, selflessly guided me, and she is actually an icon of this sport. Her charisma, her emotions, and not only great jumps and results made this sport the focus".
At the Olympic Games, mostly Russian women celebrate, why?
"I guess they inherited the best system and Russian and Ukrainian women are the most successful. Well, this year the Australian Nicola McDermott managed to upset their plans, winning silver in Tokyo. The gold was taken by the Russian Marija Lasickene, she is the best and she managed to return in time after her injury".
Plans for 2022?
"I finished the year fifth in Europe, ninth in the world, and I want to shine at all five big competitions next year. That is my priority, and if the opportunity arises again, the Diamond League, why not".
Bonus video: