Primary school children enjoyed Igman: Our children must know how to ski and swim

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - This winter, more than 60 primary school students from Stari Grad spent their winter holidays on Igman during January, socialising and learning to ski. The municipal mayor, Mr. Ibrahim Hadžibajrić, visited today the students of the schools "Vrhbosna", "Šejh Muhamed ef. Hadžijamaković" and "Mula Mustafa Bašeskija", who made up the second group of participants, and presented them with certificates for successfully mastering skiing skills.

It was an opportunity for socialising on the Olympic mountain Igman, and Mayor Hadžibajrić told the primary school students that their younger friends will be at the same place in the coming years, and that the Municipality will continue to finance winter holidays and skiing school for primary school students, as well as swimming school.

"We will finance these projects in the future because our children must know how to ski and swim. That is our obligation as an institution, schools, teachers, and parents. We will ensure that in Stari Grad we have no children who do not know how to stand on skis, do not know what it means to come to the mountain and enjoy it, and that will be our permanent obligation," said Hadžibajrić.

Speaking about the advantages of this project, he said it is extremely important to show children how to go to the mountain, ski, breathe fresh air, and briefly distance themselves from modern technology.

"Today, children have become alienated from each other... the childhood I had is not the same as the childhood of today's children, when technology has advanced so much that they almost don't communicate when they are together. To me, as a person who did not grow up in such a time, it is a bit funny, and we must prevent that. Here on Igman, our children not only prepared physically and conditionally, but also socialised and grew closer to each other," said Hadžibajrić.

That socialising is equally important to children as skiing was confirmed by everyone we spoke to, including Alica Krivošija, who is 11 years old and a very good student at Elementary School "Vrhbosna".

"We really had a good time... we skied, watched movies '101 Dalmatians' and 'Aska and the Wolf', we also had karaoke, and tonight they promised us a disco. I learned to ski in two days, and I had never skied before," Alica said enthusiastically.

Among the young skiers, we also met twin brothers, eleven-year-olds Almir and Aldin Katica from Elementary School "Mula Mustafa Bašeskija". Almir admitted that his brother is a slightly better skier.

"We have been on the mountain for five days... we skied, played board games, watched movies. I learned to ski, how to brake, turn, descend, and I only fell twice. Since I didn't ski yesterday, my brother Aldin skis a little better than me, but I am better at board games. I was winning at 'Ludo' and cards," Almir said.

Although they are absolute beginners, none of the primary school students will return from Igman without basic knowledge of how to ski, and their instructor Ajdin Klačar confirmed this.

"Most of them encountered skis for the first time and had never worn ski boots, so strict beginners. Nevertheless, they all learned to control their skis, and most mastered basic turns. At the beginning, we told them that even we, who have been skiing for years, fall, and that it is completely normal. We taught them that the first element learned in skiing is falling, then everything else. But, all in all, everyone was good," the instructor concluded.

The Stari Grad Municipality implemented the project "Igman 2020" through the Department for Education, Culture and Sports, and this is already the fourth year that winter holidays have been organised for primary school students, while the Municipality has been organising skiing school for almost twenty years.

The winter holidays and skiing school are organised for fifth-grade students. The Stari Grad Municipality provides them with a five-day stay on the mountain with full board, equipment, instructors, use of the ski lift, as well as medical supervision and insurance.