Lana Pudar, Bosnia's best female swimmer who claimed a gold and a bronze medal at the European Aquatic Championship in Rome this week, will not take part in the upcoming world junior championship in Peru, her team has confirmed.
In the first statement following the competition in Rome, Pudar's swim club Orka thanked for all the support they received throughout the championship.
Pudar's results come after a hard work, they said, and both the young swimmer and her team are aware of their goals, which they will keep pursuing.
Also, they have announced a press conference in her home city Mostar, which will be Pudar's only media appearance for a while as the 16-year-old swimmer will take a a much needed time for rest.
“For this reason, we also gave up on the participation in the world junior championship, which will be held in the capital of Peru, Lima, in the period from August 30 to September 5, where Lana would certainly be one of the main favourites for medals in all the disciplines in which she would perform,” said Pudar's team.
They thanked for all the invitations for public events that the young athlete was asked to attend, including the Sarajevo Film Festival closing evening or a welcome ceremony at Sarajevo's Eternal Flame Memorial.
“Thank you all from the bottom of our hearts for the invitations but Lana is in focus of our interest and it is our obligation and duty to think about both her physical and mental health. Because she is still a 16-year-old girl, so after the arduous schedule in the past period, we cannot and should not expose her to this type of obligations and stress. We will certainly find a way to thank everyone and when our obligations allow us to do so, we will answer the invitations,” the team said.
Pudar will address media on Saturday at Mostar's iconic Old Bridge at 7:30 p.m.