7. Tomislav Cvitanusic - From Soldier to Extreme Athlete

My guest today is Tomislav (Tomo) Cvitanusic. He is a well-known figure across the Balkans and beyond, not only for being an extreme alpinist and long-distance athlete, but also for his promotion of cooperation and unity across the region. As one of the many who served in the Bosnian Army from 1992-1995, Tomo spent the whole war in his city, Sarajevo. At the end of the war, he became a beacon of positivity across the region by promoting tolerance, hard work and patience. He was one of the few who in the early days after the war sought to become the change he wanted to see in his community. This quest for betterment has led him to conquering some of the world’s highest mountains including Mt. Blanc, GrossGlockner, Elbrus, Ararat, Aconcagua, Denali, and the famous Matterhorn. He has completed more than fifteen marathons around the world, including four of the "World’s Major Marathons” in Berlin, Boston, NYC and London. Recently, he also became the first person from the former Yugoslav republics to complete the prestigious and most extreme triathlon in the world, NORSEMAN in Norway. As you will hear, we talked about some of his experiences from the war and how these shaped who he became. Some of the topics we covered are:

• What life inside a war zone is really like
• Banality of conflict and how we can rebuild trust in disrupted communities.
• Survival of humanity and decency inside a war zone
• Where Bosnia and Herzegovina is today, more than 25 years after Dayton
• Links between life in a war zone and endurance sports
• Tomo’s views about the transience of life and responsibility to help others

I walked away from this conversation inspired to find new ways to contribute to my community. I wish you the same and hope that you enjoy this episode.