Student ultramarathoners from Serbia arrived in Brussels tonight, where they were welcomed by several hundred Serbian citizens.
They crossed the finish line at Brussels' Schuman Square, home to the headquarters of the European Commission and the European External Action Service, at around 19:20 p.m. They were greeted by around 500 members of the Serbian diaspora from Belgium and surrounding countries.
Upon the arrival of the student ultramarathoners, those gathered at Šuman Square chanted "Pumpaj", "Ko ne skače, taj je ćaci", and danced and sang along to the hit song "Freed from desire" by Italian pop singer Gala.
A student violinist played the hymn "God of Justice," which the ultramarathoners sang in chorus.
Brussels is the final destination of their 16-day, 1.933-kilometer relay ultramarathon, which they set off on from Novi Sad. The last destination, 97 kilometers long, was from Liège to Brussels.
An hour before them, representatives of the Serbian diaspora arrived in Brussels, having walked from Aachen, Germany, in support of the students.
The students, who have named the ultramarathon "From My Village to Brussels", plan to talk to representatives of European Union institutions about the situation in Serbia, the demands that led them to organize months of blockades and protests after the collapse of the canopy at the Novi Sad train station, and the latest request to call early parliamentary elections.
European Commission spokesman Guillaume Mercier said in Brussels today that the student ultramarathoners will be received on Thursday by European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Cos and European Commissioner for Youth, Culture and Sport Glenn Micallef.
"We have expressed our position on the situation in Serbia several times, Commissioner Kos will listen to the demands and messages of the students. We are committed to cooperating with anyone who wants to work on the path to accession to the European Union and on important reforms, she will discuss this at the meeting with the students," said Mercier.
The students who arrived in Brussels tonight are also expected to meet with the Chairman of the European Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee, David McAllister, and a number of MEPs.
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