Killed defending the city 24 years ago: Vinko valued Sarajevo more than the Olympics

A day before his trip to the Barcelona Olympics, where he was supposed to represent our country in judo and carry the flag of the independent Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, on May 8, 1992, while defending Sarajevo during the famous battle for Hrasno Brdo, Vinko Šamarlić was killed, reports the Patria news agency.

Šamarlić received permission from the Bosnian authorities to leave the front lines and prepare for the Olympics. However, he did not want to abandon his comrades from the Special Unit of the MUP of RBiH, the Bosna Detachment.

He fought his last battle and match on that June 8.

Šamarlić was a prominent judoka of the Željezničar club, with which he won numerous medals and which led him to a place on the national team of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In the Sarajevo neighborhood of Ilidža, one street today bears his name. The Željezničar Judo Club, in memory of this top athlete and hero of the defense of Sarajevo, traditionally organizes the Memorial Tournament "Vinko Šamarlić".

Šamarlić was posthumously awarded the "Golden Police Star", the "Medal for Bravery", and the "Order of the Golden Coat of Arms with Swords".

He was born on March 8, 1964, in Crkvica near Zavidovići, where he completed primary school. He then came to Sarajevo, where he finished the Secondary Police School, after which he began working as a police officer. He became a special forces member in 1985, when he assumed the position of commander of a combat unit with the rank of captain.

On the occasion of the 24th anniversary of the defense of Hrasno Brdo, the traditional VI "March of Remembrance Vinko Šamarlić" was held today, followed by the unveiling of a memorial plaque at the site of Vinko Šamarlić's death.