Olympics
Modest and self-effacing Slavonian gymnastic talent...
This famous, but self-effacing Yugoslav athlete, originally from Slavonia, is from the small municipality of Čepin. At the European Championship in 1961, he won 4th place in the all-around, which is still the best Croatian ranking in such a competition. He was a member of the Osijek club Partizan and the Zagreb club "Hrvatski sokol".
He achieved significant success for SFRY at the revolutionary Olympic Games in Rome in 1960. These Olympic Games are known for the fact that, for the first time in history, an African country won gold at them.
He also celebrated at the Olympic Games in Tokyo in 1946, the first games held in Asia. Namely, in Rome he won 9th place in the team all-around, while in Tokyo the Yugoslav team won 11th place. Petrović was also successful in individual competitions, so he won 39th place in Rome and 39th place in Tokyo.
In 2021, the Croatian Gymnastics Federation awarded him the Lifetime Achievement Award. His outstanding achievements are still remembered today, and his great talent and modesty are an inspiration to young athletes.
