Matija Marinić (born 24 December 1990) is a

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

n slalom canoeist who has competed at the international level since 2006. Matija competed in the C1 event at the

2020 Summer Olympics The officially the and officially branded as were an international multi-sport event that was held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some of the preliminary sporting events beginning on 21 July 2021. Tokyo ...

, finishing 11th. He is from

Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...

and is coached by 1992 Olympian Stjepan Perestegi.

Personal life

Matija married Tea Budimir, a physiotherapist, in 2016 and has a child named Marko. He is from

Rijeka Rijeka (; Fiume ( �fjuːme in Italian and in Fiuman dialect, Fiuman Venetian) is the principal seaport and the List of cities and towns in Croatia, third-largest city in Croatia. It is located in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County on Kvarner Ba ...

on the

Kvarner Gulf The Kvarner Gulf (, or ; ; or ) sometimes also Kvarner Bay, is a bay in the northern Adriatic Sea, located between the Istrian peninsula and the northern Croatian Littoral mainland. The bay is a part of Croatia's internal waters. The largest is ...

and currently lives in Croatia's capital city,

. He completes most of his training on the

Sava River The Sava, is a river in Central and Southeast Europe, a right-bank and the longest tributary of the Danube. From its source in Slovenia it flows through Croatia and along its border with Bosnia and Herzegovina, and finally reaches Serbia, fee ...

in his home town but spends a significant proportion of his time at the

Tacen Whitewater Course The Tacen Whitewater Course is a venue for canoe and kayak slalom competition in Tacen, Slovenia, a suburb of Ljubljana. Located on the Sava River, eight kilometers northwest of the city center, it is known locally as Kayak Canoe Club Tacen (). ...

in nearby

Ljubljana {{Infobox settlement , name = Ljubljana , official_name = , settlement_type = Capital city , image_skyline = {{multiple image , border = infobox , perrow = 1/2/2/1 , total_widt ...

, making it somewhat of a home course for him and other Croatian slalom canoeists.

Career

Junior

Matija began paddling in 1997 with Kajak Kanu Klub Zagreb after transitioning from water polo. He made his international debut in 2006 aged 15, competing at the Junior European Championships and Junior World Championships in

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...

and

Solkan Solkan ( or ; , or ''Salcano'') is a settlement in the Municipality of Nova Gorica in the Gorizia region of western Slovenia, at the border with Italy. Although it forms a single urban area with the city of Nova Gorica today, it has maintained th ...

, respectively. He finished 27th at both events. In 2008 Matija made the finals at both junior international events, finishing 10th at the

Europeans Europeans are the focus of European ethnology, the field of anthropology related to the various ethnic groups that reside in the states of Europe. Groups may be defined by common ancestry, language, faith, historical continuity, etc. There are ...

(after incurring a 50-second penalty) and 6th at the Worlds. During this time he also competed at the U23 level, finishing 8th in C1 team at the

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

and 2008. Matija competed in several

World Cups A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...

as a Junior and achieved a 15th place at the 2008 event on his "home" course in

Tacen Tacen (; in older sources also ''Tacenj'',''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, pp. 114–115. ) is a formerly independent settlement in the n ...

U23

Marinić began competing at the U23 level in 2010, finishing 9th at the U23 European Championships in

Markkleeberg Markkleeberg () is an affluent suburb of Leipzig, located in the Leipzig district of the Free State of Saxony, Germany. The river Pleiße runs through the city, which borders Leipzig to the north and to the west. Markkleeberg is known to be th ...

. In the same year he competed at the senior

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...

in Tacen and finished in 13th place, aged 19. He competed in the inaugural edition of the ICF World U23 Canoe Slalom Championships in

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

Wausau, Wisconsin Wausau ( ) is a city in Marathon County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. It is located along the Wisconsin River and had a population of 39,994 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is the core city of the Wausau ...

and finished in 29th place. He competed in the same event again in

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

Liptovský Mikuláš Liptovský Mikuláš (; until 1952 ''Liptovský Svätý Mikuláš'', ; ) is a town in northern Slovakia, on the Váh River, about from Bratislava. It lies in the Liptov region, in Podtatranská kotlina, Liptov Basin near the Low Tatra and Tat ...

, improving to 18th place. In 2011 Matija won a silver medal in C1 at the U23 European Championships in neighbouring

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

and bettered this achievement two years later by becoming the 2013 U23 European Champion in

Bourg-Saint-Maurice Bourg-Saint-Maurice (; Arpitan: ''Bôrg-Sant-Mori'' or simply ''Le Bôrg''), popularly known as Bourg, is a commune in the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. Located on the Italian border south of Cha ...

. Matija also won a bronze medal at the

2013 Canoe Slalom World Cup The 2013 Canoe Slalom World Cup was a series of five races in 5 canoeing and kayaking categories organized by the International Canoe Federation (ICF). It was the 26th edition. The team events were held as part of the world cup program for the first ...

in Tacen.

Senior

Marinić finished in 42nd place at the 2015 World Championships in

Lee Valley The Lea Valley (also spelt Lee Valley), the valley of the River Lea, has been used as a transport corridor, a source of sand and gravel, an industrial area, a water supply for London, and a recreational area. The London 2012 Summer Olympics wer ...

which doubled as a qualification event for the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Rio 2016, were an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with preliminary events i ...

, missing out on automatic qualification. His only other chance to qualify was at the 2016 European Championships in Liptovský Mikuláš. Matija finished in 11th place at this event, just short of the top ten and the opportunity to race Ander Elosegi for the European quota. At the 2019 World Championships in

La Seu d'Urgell La Seu d'Urgell (; , formerly ''Urgell'') is a town located in Alt Urgell county in Alt Pirineu, Catalonia, Spain. The town is also the head of its judicial district and the seat of the Bishop of Urgell, one of the co-princes of Andorra. It is ...

, Matija finished in 12th place, automatically

qualifying Qualification may refer to: Processes * Qualifications-Based Selection (QBS), a competitive contract procurement process established by the United States Congress * Process qualification, ensures that manufacturing and production processes can ...

for the

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

as the 10th ranked NOC. Due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, the only two major competitions Matija competed in between the 2019 Worlds and the Olympic Games were the

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

and 2021 European Championships, where he finished in 16th and 14th place, respectively. Matija has dealt with knee issues since he was 18, due to the awkward sitting position required for C1. Following the announcement of the postponement of the 2020 Games, he underwent knee surgery so as to not be held back by his injury and to be "faster and better" at the delayed 2021 Games. Marinić spent the winter leading into the Olympics training at Wadi Adventure in the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

with fellow Croatian Ren Korpes. In the lead-up to the postponed Games he won an ICF World Ranking race in April in Tacen, and made the final of the

2021 Canoe Slalom World Cup The 2021 Canoe Slalom World Cup was a series of four races in several canoeing and kayaking categories organized by the International Canoe Federation (ICF). It was the 34th edition. Calendar The series opened with World Cup Race 1 in Prague, C ...

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

, where he finished in third place but was disqualified for a delayed start. On 13 July 2021, 8 days after arriving in Tokyo to prepare for the

, Matija and coach Stjepan were sent into self-isolation by the Olympic organisers due to there being an infected passenger on their flight. They were initially required to self-isolate for a week but were allowed to return to training on the 15 July, two days later, following an appeal by the president of the

Croatian Olympic Committee The Croatian Olympic Committee (, HOO) is the non-profit organization representing Croatian athletes in the International Olympic Committee. The COC organizes Croatia's representatives at the Summer and Winter Olympic Games. It also organizes the ...

Zlatko Mateša Zlatko Mateša (; born 17 June 1949) is a Croatian politician who served as Prime Minister of Croatia from 1995 to 2000. A member of the Croatian Democratic Union, Mateša is currently the president of the Croatian Olympic Committee and honora ...

. Mateša publicly criticized the handling of the issue, calling it a "glaring example of the inability of the organizers to deal with the problems associated with the pandemic". Matija finished in 11th place in the C1 event at the 2020 Games, after being eliminated in the semi-final.

Results

World Cup individual podiums

Complete World Cup results

Notes
No overall rankings were determined by the ICF, with only two races possible due to the

.
Marinić finished 3rd but was disqualified from the final, being classified 10th.

Complete Championship Results

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Marinic, Matija Croatian male canoeists 1990 births Living people Canoeists at the 2020 Summer Olympics Olympic canoeists for Croatia Sportspeople from Rijeka European Games competitors for Croatia Canoeists at the 2023 European Games Canoeists at the 2024 Summer Olympics 21st-century Croatian sportsmen