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Biba Golic
Photo: Chicago Magazine/Esther Kang
INTERNATIONAL CHAMPION
BIBA GOLIC
By Felicia Pesis
"Just keep moving!"
What do Serbia and Texas have in common? Not much, which is exactly why table tennis champion Biba Golic was a bit nervous about her move from Coka, Serbia to Fort Worth, Tex. “It was one of the biggest steps in my life,” she shares. “It created incredible challenges and changes in all aspects of my life.” Biba was able to adapt to these changes though, and she has adjusted to the American lifestyle beautifully, experiencing remarkable success here.
While Biba was an all-star athlete in Serbia, she has become much more than that in the United States. Not only has she continued to win championships, she has also experienced fame and success in other facets of American life. Through film roles, television appearances and magazine features, Biba has become a household name, but her original success was set off by her all-star table tennis skills.
Biba began playing table tennis at the young age of nine. “My father was a table tennis coach and enthusiast,” she explains. ”He was the one who got me involved with the sport. In the beginning, I would just go to table tennis school 2-3 times a week. After it had become clear that I possessed some talent, I started going to the practices every day, and gradually, it developed into a serious pursuit. Soon after, I reached a professional rhythm – practicing up to seven hours a day. My dad helped me a lot, as well as my sister, who also played – we were a table tennis family.”
Through the years, Biba’s performance improved quickly. The 32-year-old became a member of the Serbia National Cadet team just three years after she started playing. Soon after, she garnered a sponsor, Killerspin table tennis, which helped facilitate her move to the USA. “[They] wanted to launch a new marketing campaign,” she explains. “They preferred having me [in the US], instead of in Europe. I was curious about living in the US, and I wanted to come here.”
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