April 26, 2023 - Antonio Franko is Croatia's most successful para triathlete. He won many medals, but his favourite is the bronze from the European Championship in Valencia. Although he achieved most of his goals, he revealed his unfulfilled sports dream.

As 24Sata writes, everyone has had a role model, at least in childhood. That is why it should not be surprising that children often look for their role models and inspiration in top athletes, who later influence the choice of sport that the child wants to play. And one of those who can inspire us all with his sports and life successes is Antonio Franko. Antonio was born with a disability, but despite this, he is the most successful Croatian para triathlete. He is involved in one of the most challenging sports disciplines, and in the conversation with 24Sata, he revealed how he decided to take up this sport in the first place, what the most difficult challenges were, and his unfulfilled career goal.

'Stubbornness, self-criticism and patience'

Antonio grew up in Kraljevica, a small town near Rijeka, where he took his first sports steps. He has the best memories of his childhood and the region he grew up in, with his friends and family supporting him. His parents, he points out, were his financial and moral support from day one, and his childhood friends are still with him today and proudly follow and celebrate his every success.

"I started sports for rehabilitation. Due to my disability, until I was 18, I constantly had surgeries, so recovery meant working in the pool to train my leg for as normal and functional a life as possible. That's why swimming was my first contact with sports when I was five. As for para sports, it started when I was 19 years old, when, at the persuasion of our Paralympian Milka Milinković, I started swimming more intensively. Then the president of the club where I trained got me interested in triathlons, which he did recreationally. I took a chance and tried it. Even today, I can say that I found myself in that sport", Antonio told 24Sata.

Every day continues Antonio Franko; progress was visible, and better results arrived. But you can't become a top athlete overnight, says Antonio, so his results didn't come all at once. There was a lot of training, sacrifice, determination, and time, and thanks to that, today, he holds the title of one of the world's best paratriathletes.

"Every athlete should have qualities such as stubbornness, self-criticism, and patience. I don't think it works any other way. You need to give yourself time in training and be patient. Success will come. These three mentioned qualities also guided me through sports life and led me to the title of the most successful Croatian para triathlete".

Training seven days a week

As Antonio points out, his most challenging discipline is running, which comes at the end, after swimming and cycling. But of all three triathlon disciplines, he admits, cycling is his favorite.

"I train seven days a week, approximately 4 to 6 hours daily. Sunday is the easiest day because I do regeneration training. But on a weekly basis, I swim an average of 20 kilometers, cycle a total of 250 kilometers, and run 40 kilometers. My season lasts approximately from May to October, and everything else is subordinated to the preparation for competitions", Antonio described his regime.

In addition to being fully dedicated to training and preparation, Antonio is a fitness coach for soccer and basketball players.

"The biggest problem is the lack of time, but if you do what you love, like me, it's a real pleasure. When I train other athletes, it comes as a break from my sport, and I can say that I get to relax. This job is a challenge because one day when I finish my career, I plan to become a coach. This is an opportunity for me to build myself into something I want to do in the future", said Franko.

"Professional staff shortage"

Regarding the future, this 28-year-old from Rijeka has clear goals. He says that he has achieved most of them so far, but there is one more that he hopes to fulfill soon.

"When I started in the more professional field, my goal was to compete with the best in the world. Year after year, I progressed, so my goals also increased. My goal is to always push the limits, and I want to find out what my maximum is. This is perhaps one of my main drivers. I had failures, but that is also how you learn. Right now, my biggest goal is to win a medal at the Paralympic Games in Paris," says Antonio Franko, adding that preparations for Paris have already begun.

Although he has won many titles and medals, Antonio is most proud of the medal from the 2019 European Championship in Valencia, where he won third place. For him, that success was a turning point in his career because, as he says, only after that did others start taking him more seriously as an athlete.

"That is why it is crucial to send a message to young people to give themselves time and be patient. But as far as para-sport in Croatia is concerned, the biggest problem is the infrastructure. There is a lack of swimming pools and gyms, which is a constant problem. Someone who can only swim is doomed to a swimming pool, and we know that not every city has a swimming pool. At the same time, every city, for example, has a football field. Also, there is a shortage of professional staff willing to work with people with disabilities. I hope that one day these problems will also be solved", concludes  Antonio.

Antonio Franko is one of the faces of P&G's 'Winners every day' initiative. It is a campaign by the Croatian Paralympic Committee and Procter & Gamble Croatia. Thank you to Paralympians for getting involved in campaigns that aim to support the further development of parasports in Croatia.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated Sport section.

April 17, 2021 - Daddyhood Dadathlon is a celebration of the movement to create more opportunities for fathers to spend active time with their children.

Three major events will be held this year to promote an active role of parents with their children, thus sharing moments that will last in the memory of both. Daddyhood Dadathlon is a sports event created to inspire dads and kids of all ages to do a physical activity together.

The event has been organized by Daddyhood Europe, a non-profit foundation that seeks to break with the historical stereotypes created regarding the role of parents with their children.

Daddyhood Europe website

This year Daddyhood Dadathlon races will take place in three stages:

• April 17th to 24th: Running with kids (strollers allowed)
• June 20th to 27th: Cycling with kids (bike trailers or a child seat allowed)
• September 19th to 26th: Trekking with kids (carrier backpack allowed)

The 2021 Daddyhood Dadathlon edition will be held virtually and to allow flexibility to participants, each event will be open for participation during one whole week.

The races are conceived for individual teams (one father with his child/ren). It is possible to team up with other fathers and their children, to motivate each other and have even more fun, but each team member will have to complete the full distance of the race.

Participants can choose to take part in only one or two races, but to complete the full Daddyhood Dadathlon, they will need to compete in all three races/disciplines.

Daddyhood Europe website

Daddyhood Dadathlon consists of three different distance levels at which participants can compete, depending on their capabilities and ambitions:

• Bronze level – Running 3k, cycling 7k, hiking 2k
• Silver level – Running 7k, cycling 15k, hiking 5k
• Gold level – Running 15k, cycling 30k, hiking 10k

The main goal of Daddyhood Dadathlon is to complete the chosen level in each of the races while bonding and having fun. There will be a leader board available to track the times but the prizes will be awarded to the team who will make the most attractive and most inspiring pictures or videos and post them online, tagging @daddyhoodeurope #DaddyHoodDadathlon.

If you want to register and find more information about this year's races, you might do so on the Daddyhood Dadathlon site. You can also sign up and find more about the prizes on RaceID.

For more about lifestyle in Croatia, visit our dedicated TCN page.

The main event of spring 2019 on Korčula will probably be the food and wine festival Korčulanske pjatance, and TCN has written about the appeal of the festival. But, this year late April and May will be filled with various interesting events on Korčula, inviting you to visit the island before the craziness of the high tourist season starts and enjoy the island and the town of Korčula in all its glory.

One of the traditions observed in Korčula for centuries is the celebration of the Holy Week, or as the people of Korčula call it "Vela setemana" (obviously, a combination of a Croatian word for big and an Italian word for week). All three of the confraternities of Korčula (The Confraternity of All Saints, the St. Rocco Confraternity, and the confraternity of St. Michael) participate in the procession of the Holy Friday (April 19th 2019), one of the biggest such processions in Croatia.

Not often does it happen that the big processions around the Korčula Old Town take place not even a week apart, but this year, since the Easter is so late in the spring, the festivities of the day of Saint Mark take place just a few days after Easter. The procession and the celebration of the saint to whom the Korčula cathedral is dedicated will happen on Thursday, April 25th. It is also a great opportunity to visit the Cathedral itself, a gothic-renesanse monument built in 14th, 15th and 16th century by Italian masters and local builders, first and foremost master stonemason Marko Andrijić.

If you're not into food, wine or religious celebrations, maybe you're into sports and recreation. If that's the case, Korčula has got something for you too: Marco Polo Challenge Triathlon, which is taking place on April 27th this year, for the ninth time. There are several disciplines to choose from, either the olympic triathlon (1500 m swimming + 40 km on a bicycle + 10 km running) for the most fit, sprint triathlon (750m + 20km + 5 km), sprint triathlon relay (one athlete doing each of the disciplines), super sprint triathlon for the kids under 19 and under 16 (375m + 10 km + 2.5 km) and a fundraising 5 km street race open for everyone. Korčula Marco Polo Challenge triathlon is the first race of the triathlon season in Croatia.

And, finally, after the triathlon and all that racing has made you hungry, the Croatian Island Products fair will open in Korčula on April 27th as well. It's an established event, promoting the flavours of Korčula in the location accessible to tourists throughout the tourist season once a week until the late autumn, helping local producers present their products to a wider audience.

Plava Laguna, one of the biggest hospitality and tourism companies in Croatia, Istria County, Poreč town and Funtana municipalities, as well as their tourist boards, decided to support the new top event coming to Poreč this spring: Ironman 5150 2019 and 2020 races will be held in Istria!

HRTurizam writes about World Triathlon Corporation, the owner of the license for the event, signing the contract with Plava Laguna for the two years. 5150 race means that it's an Olympic triathlon, meaning 1.5 kilometres of swimming, 40 kilometres of cycling and 10 kilometres running. The race in 2019 will be held on May 5th, between Funtana and Poreč.

"We're thrilled that we brought the Triathlon 5150 series race to this wonderful part of Croatia, and we're sure that the athletes from the entire EMEA region will have a great event, but also an amazing weekend in Poreč", Stefan Petschnig, director of Ironman Europe, Middle East and Asia said. He added that some athletes might be intimidated by the prospect of participating in an full Ironman or Ironman 70.3 race, but 5150 race is much more accessible to athletes of varying, albeit still majestic, abilities.

Race director Goran Vrus said that he expects more than 500 participants in the race, and more than 1500 people coming to Poreč for support with them. In addition to Ithe ironman 5150 2019 Poreč race, Ironkids and Irongirl are planned to take place on August 6th, 2019.

Marjanski Đir has been held every year for the last 18 years and is a triathlon that is separated into 3 categories: Olympic, Super Sprint, and Aquathlon. The triathlons take place at SRC Bene, Marjan Forest Park in Split.

Think Croatian tourism has only sun, beach and sea? Think again. Croatia is an incredibly diverse activity playground, as TCN's Daniela Rogulj explains on June 28, 2016, in the latest in our series, 25 Things to Know about Croatia - Adventure Tourism. 

Hvar.life is an adventure tourism company that combines your pasion with your vacation. Offering intensive options such as triathlon training and cycling, Hvar.life also offers adventure tours such as kayaking, sailing, climbing, hiking and windsurfing - to name a few.