[wzslider autoplay=”true”]You made your first steps in athletics at the Kamberovica Polje stadium in Zenica. Mr. Tuka, can you tell us when and how you got involved in athletics? Is there someone that you consider to be your role model?
I started dealing with athletics by accident when I won in the race at 400m at the ‘Little Olympics,’ which is held between the primary and secondary schools. I ran for my High School “Kemal Kapetanovic” from Kakanj, and right after the race, the coach Professor Halid Sejdic, approached to me. He discovered me and introduced me to the world of athletics, and so I became member of the Athletic Club “Zenica” on the 1st of January 2009.
“I was not so much interested in athletics at school, more in football. But at the age of 17 I was told to run a 400m as part of my school physical education lessons.” He says.
“I just ran in normal training shoes and a T-shirt, no spikes or specialist clothing, I think I had been playing basketball a short while before, and I ran 50 seconds.”
“My teacher was amazed and said I had some talent as a runner, so I started training a little more seriously for athletics on exactly 1 January 2009, just a few days before my 18th birthday.”
You finished first at the race in Madrid, and you dedicated your personal best of 1.43: 84 to the victims of Srebrenica. How did the public react to this gesture?
That day will remain special for me, since I achieved the best result at 800m in Europe with the time 1: 43.84 and set a new record of B&H at 800m and the record of the Balkans. However, at that point, I was not thinking about that because I thought about the people in Srebrenica. I was watching the pictures whole day and it was very hard, but it gave me great strength to send a message to the world. Thank God my wish came true. All international media shared the news positively because they know what happened and even if they did not know before, they saw it at that moment.
Is it true that you once said: Do not say that I am a successful athlete until I achieve 1.44? However, you are now in the world class with a time of 1.42. How does that feel?
It is true, I said that in Baku when they were telling me that I was a star, and I told them to call me like that then when I ran 1:44. But now my personal record is 1: 42.51 and I have to admit I did not expect so big improvement, and neither did my coach. With this result I became the fastest man in the world at 800m, and that feeling is amazing, something really incredible.
What is your biggest goal in life and your career? What is the thing that pushes you forward, your biggest motivation?
When it comes to my career, I have always set my goals gradually. First I wanted to be the best in B&H, then on the Balkans, in Europe and on the world, and somehow, all of that realized as I imagined. The love of athletics is my greatest motivation, and it gives me that strength that I need the most. When we add the support of my family and the faith in the good God, there is no obstacle for me.
Preparations for the Olympics in Rio have started. What are your plans until the Olympics?
I started with preparations for next season on October 11, and I am already in full training. I train two times per day, every day, I do not have a single day of rest, because it’s all about training. Me and my coach are now focusing only on training, without worrying about races that are waiting us. We are currently in Sicily and later we will travel to South Africa, where I will stay for the whole January.
What do you think what is the best way to motivate young people today to get involved in athletics and sports?
Coaches in Italy also think that children who have everything are harder to motivate. Their parents simply provide them with all sort of things like mobile phones etc. from the early age. I am not saying this is wrong but there has to be some kind of measure and limitation. Children are inseparable from their phones today, they don’t even go out anymore and even when they do train, they do it for their parents. Very often these kids train only physically but their thoughts are at home and they hardly wait to get back there and continue to play games. Parents should think about that much more instead of bragging how their kids have ‘superphones’. I grew up with internet and phones too but there was some measure in everything. Will plays an important role here. Some children have top conditions and their parents finance their activities easily but all of that is in vain if the child has no will or motive to do it. It’s as simple as this: Who really wants it – he does it, who doesn’t want it – he does it all in vain. I had no top conditions but I was fighting and motivating myself at the same time.
Amel Tuka (born 9 January 1991) is a Bosnian middle-distance runner who specializes in the 800-metre race. Tuka holds two national records of Bosnia and Herzegovina for the 400 metre and 800 metre disciplines. On July 17, 2015, With his time of 1:42.51, Tuka positioned himself as the world leader in the men’s 800 metres in Monaco for the year 2015. subsequently earned his country’s first medal in a major athletics championship with his third-place finish in the men’s 800 meters at the 2015 World Championships in Athletics.
Interview by Zejna SY