The Current - Why Sarajevo is rebuilding its luge track

Episode Date: April 28, 2025

Sarajevo's luge track was the pride of the city during the 1984 Olympics, but now it’s overgrown with weeds and riddled with bullet holes from the Bosnian war. A new film called The Track, screening at the Hot Docs Film Festival in Toronto, explores how a group of young athletes and their coach are trying to bring this piece of their city's history back to life.

1942, Europe. Soldiers find a boy surviving alone in the woods. They make him a member of Hitler's army. But what no one would know for decades, he was Jewish. Could a story so unbelievable be true? I'm Dan Goldberg. I'm from CBC's personally, Toy Soldier, available now wherever you get your podcasts. This is a CBC podcast. Hello, I'm Matt Galloway and this is the current podcast. He's got to hang on. He looks very smooth right now.

He had a half second lead going into this thing. Hang on, Paul. That's all I can say. Hang on. The gold medal is yours. I know you're rooting for him, Jeff. He's married. He has a son. He probably has a son. That was back in 1984, a moment of glory at the Sarajevo Olympics, and the scene of that moment was the Luz track. That track was built especially for the Games, a dramatic winding course down the Trebevich mountain. In the years since, though, the track has fallen on hard times.

In the wake of war and the breakup of the country. The Luz track is now a little more than a ruin. A new documentary shows how a group of young athletes and their coach is trying to bring this piece of their city's history back to life. The film is called The Track. It is screening as part of the Hot Docs Film Festival in Toronto.

The director of the film, Ryan Siddou, is with me in studio along with Mirza Nikolayev, an Olympic loser from Sarajevo who has hurtled down said track and others around the world. Good morning to you both. Good morning. Thanks for having us. Thanks for being here. Ryan, describe the current state of the Luz track in Sarajevo.

What does it look like? Well, it's, I mean, and how I kind of discovered it myself is that it's a tourist attraction and then you go, okay, well, why is it a tourist attraction and then you go, okay, well why is it a tourist attraction? Because it is a massive concrete structure in the middle of a forest that is covered with graffiti. You know, you see the remnants of past glory there. And you discovered it because you were walking on it, right? I was walking on the track, yeah. It's a bit of a longer therapy session, as I say,

of why I have an affinity on the track, yeah. It's a bit of a longer therapy session, as I say, of why I have an affinity for the region, but that just kind of comes back to, you know, looking for community and acceptance, which I hadn't really found in a sense in Canada at the time, and feeling the kind of warmth there is why I went back to the region. But yes, I was walking on the track as a tourist, and I was told to get off the track. And I was really curious as why I was being yelled at to get off the track, and that's when I connected with the coach, and just kind of a light went on in my head that I had to tell this story,

and from there I just kind of cultivated the relationship. Mears, the track is really interesting, because as Ryan's described it, I mean, there's weeds on it, graffiti, there's these holes that are in it, does not seem like the kind of thing that you would want to whip down if you're training for any sort of race. Yeah, no, it's a lot different than all of the other tracks in the world. So where did the idea for using it come from?

From our coach. I mean, the whole track is still usable. The whole thing is usable even though people still think it's a ruin. It's filled with holes like you can't go down it. Also he was the one who was investing a lot of his own money to rebuild the track basically or repair the parts of the track which were, well, where the bullet holes were left or like where the big holes were left where they shot the snipers. One scene in the movie was showcasing that it was actually a front line. So they would keep the snipers would stick the barrel of their gun through. Yeah, through the corners, through the tracks. So he, I mean, I think it was, they started in 2014, rebuilding the track and cleaning it up.

At some parts on the track, even trees were growing from it. So it was, it was pretty bad track, even trees were growing from it. So it was, it was pretty bad. Now it's looking a lot different. It's, I mean, still filled like graffiti filled, uh, still a ruin, let's say, but we can use it, we can use it fully and, uh, it's good. We use it by just switching the, the, the steals with the wheels. The coach that Mirza mentioned, he's obsessed with this track. What's going on there?

What do you think, Ryan, what's behind his obsession with this track? Well, I, you know, Luge is a bit of an obscure sport, but I think once you embed and get into the world, people, I think the adrenaline, I think the community of it, I think people just really love the sport. And I think for adrenaline, I think the community of it, I think people just really love the sport.

And I think for Senad in particular, he just gravitates towards it. He loves the speed, he loves rock and roll music and going fast. So I think he feels that kind of element in his life. But also for Senad, the track represents something bigger. The track really is a representation and symbol of the country itself. And I think for him, it's this piece of nostalgia of the good times. And he had, you know, so many special moments at that track, and it means so much to him. And to see it in this state of kind of ruin, it's motivated him to bring it back because

it makes him so sad because he knows the past glory and joy it brought to him and many others. Mirza, when did you think that you would be good at luge? That this could be something that you would not just survive, because we'll talk about what it's like, but that you actually could be good at it. I never thought of it that way. I just thought of it as an upgraded version of normal sledding. Really? Like seriously, since the day one, since I tried luge, I was just thinking, oh, this

is just going to be better, funnier version of sledding, like regular sledding downhill. And that was it for me for the first like five years when I started training. And I didn't really think much of it. Not even about the Olympics or whatever. I was just thinking about having fun and I never thought that am I good, am I bad? I just really wanted to have fun and then it worked out in the end. It worked out. The film follows you as you kind of work through this dream of making it to the Winter Olympics in Beijing in 2022. Yeah. What is it like? I've done some

sledding, I've not gone down a lose track, they're very different things. What is it like, I've done some sledding, I've not gone down a lose track, they're very different things. What is it like to go as fast as you go down that track? In the beginning, it's such a nice feeling. I remember my first week when I went to Latvia for the FIL school, it was such an amazing experience and I remember going like, now it's a slow, now it's a slow speed, like 55 kilometers an hour, but I feel like

oh this is good, this is good, okay I want more, I want more. And then... It's not scary? It was scary but good scary you know. It was such an amazing feeling and I think that's what attracted me to the sport aside from it well it being unique and then nobody else does it and then it's a thing that I can showcase to everybody. And then it just brought me a lot of joy. That's why I continued. But the feeling when you go down the track,

everything just shuts down. You have your 50 seconds in front of you, and it's just your own 50 seconds. You can do whatever you want with them. And then, it's funny, but I feel the most peaceful when I'm on the track, like when I'm doing the run. That's why. It's just me, my thoughts, and then nothing else, no care in the world.

You made it to the Olympics. What was it like for you to compete in the Olympics? That was a different level of scary, I will say. I was, I remember on the start trembling, because I was, I was having in my head, like I even lost these 50 seconds of my own free, Because I was I was having in my head like I even lost these 50 seconds of my own free or my own time It was so scary because in the back of my head I was always thinking like oh don't crash don't hit don't do this Don't do that. Don't trip. Don't I don't know. I was trying to be perfect Just because so many people are watching and then after 24 years like before me It was it was actually,

the last guy on the Olympics that was doing Luge was 1998. So it was a big pressure, even though I didn't really feel it in the beginning, at the Olympics, I was really, really terrified. One of the things you say in the film is that everybody wants something good to happen here and when I'm on the track, I think about that. Tell me about that. What do people want, do you think? And it's a little bit of what Ryan was saying about how your coach thinks about this too. So people back home, I mean, people generally in the world, there's a lot of bad things happening today.

And then a lot of people, or most of the people just want something good to happen. Like everybody's excited to see some good news, somebody succeeding, somebody, I don't know, helping somebody else. So I felt very nice and very good that through the thing that I love, I can bring something good to the others, especially back home because it's so much nonsense going on still talking about war even after 30 years, everybody's so focused on who's Bosnian, who's Croatian, who's Serbian, they don't even want to make any improvements. So I feel like, hey, it's

a good thing that I'm bringing something good through the thing that I love and that's what made me keep going. That's a lot of weight to carry on your shoulders. It is, it is, but it's a lot of motivation as well. It's not as hard, especially when you love something and then when you're obsessed with it as well. And then, I don't know, and then maybe it's because I have a supportive family, supportive friends. Actually, Ryan, who became family as well,

and everybody who was on the movie project. Yeah, I had a lot of support from everybody, so I think that made it a bit easier. Now our change will honour the Supreme Court of Canada and its role in protecting the rights and freedoms of all Canadians. Its guiding motto of justice and truth has defined its decisions since 1875. The new one dollar commemorative coin features a semicircle of laurels, symbolizing the nine judges and the court's enduring commitment to justice. Find the limited edition, 150th anniversary of the Supreme Court of Canada coin today.

A VP at HBO said no one would ever watch Yellowstone. Stephen King was rejected by 30 publishers, Charles Schultz was told he'd never make a living scribbling, and Missy Elliott was dropped by her label. The stories of famous names, their lesser-known rejections, and the insights those rejections provide. We regret to inform you the Rejection Podcast. Listen to Season 6 wherever you get your podcasts. I want to come back to that, but one of the other things that happens when you're at the Olympics is

you carry the flag out and the camera catches you, you wink and you become a superstar in China. You are known as the winking guy. Yeah, that was crazy. Like you became internet famous. I became, I think I was, I was saying it in the movie, but I think I was two weeks top 10 trending on their version of Google. It's called Vabo. And there were so many, so many people reaching out to me, messaging me about, I don't know, like, Hey, congratulations. Hey, there's that. And then the good thing about it was after the Olympics, there's this one story, I don't know, like, hey, congratulations, hey, this, that. And then the good thing about it was after the Olympics, there's this one story, I don't know if I've ever told it like live. One of the Chinese girls, she was visiting Sarajevo and she was on the Bob Say track and

by coincidence, it was my cousin who was the tour guide. And then she's like, hey, do you know him? He's like, hey, oh yeah, that's my cousin. And she started screaming and she's like, hey, do you know him? And he's like, hey, oh yeah, that's my cousin. She started screaming and she's like, I need to see him. So what they did was bring her at my house and I'm like, hey, how's it going? Then she flipped. It was an amazing experience. That's what happens when you wink on live television. Yeah, but that's such a nice experience. I never imagined that something like that could happen. And the only thing I was thinking about during the opening ceremony when me and my friend Alpine Skier were holding the flag, I was just thinking like, don't trip, don't trip, don't trip. It's so scary, so many eyes on you. And then suddenly I see a camera, a wink, and then this happens. And

I didn't even know it happened. So it's crazy. What did you want to show about... I mean, part of this film is about the track and what happens with Mirza, but it's also about the scars of war and the legacy of war. What did you wanna show about the impact that war has had on people in that city? I think it's twofold. I think that these boys were born after the war and they interact, they still interact with the war every single day. And I just think showing, like you said, the legacy of war and kind of its lasting impact with especially all the conflict going on in the world today for people to kind of think about that and let that sink in. But at the same time, I wanted to

really co-author the film with the boys and point towards the future and show something hopeful. And I think that's really important. For the region, I think a lot of films in talking with the families, a lot of films from the region kind of just focus on the war period. And I think we did a really good job collectively of acknowledging it. It's a subtext that we address, but really this film is about young men striving and overcoming obstacles and something a little more positive. Your father fought in the war? Yeah. What did he tell you?

What has he told you about what that film is like? He doesn't really want to talk about it that much. He was, in the beginning I know that he was thinking it's like a game, like whatever it's going to be over in like two weeks, three weeks, but then he really doesn't like talking about it at all. He just wants to forget about it. So he didn't really mention anything from the war. He just mentioned some things like, I don't know, like funny things from the war, but

not much really. It was a tough period for them because he was as old as I am now, so 2022, 2023. How do you think about that? I mean, part of this is, one of the things you say in the film is it's hard to understand kind of what's brought back to life and what's left to crumble. You see the impact of the war everywhere. How do you think of the fact that he was your age when this was going on? It's so hard to imagine. Seriously, it is. It's so hard to imagine. I mean, I know they

have like PTSD from the war and everything, but then when I think about it, us kids, the kids from the people who were in the war, we also have one kind of PTSD from their stories. We're always, whenever there's something happening on the news, we're always so scared, like our parents, like, oh, is something about to happen? But then it's like, it's just like a, it's like a thing of, like from the stories or from some experiences that their friends told us. But you said something interesting earlier, which is the word that you used was nonsense to describe what's happening right now, that the people are still arguing about who's this, who's that, who's Bosnian, who's Serb, who's Croatian.

That prevents people in some ways, or prevents people from moving forward or looking forward? Yeah, it prevents them in so many ways. They're so focused about, the situation is so complicated back home right now. Still, politicians are using the like every chance that they get to influence people into thinking, oh, they're still our enemies or oh, we don't want to be like this, that. So they're still trying these cheap tricks to influence a

lot of people to like still believe in them just to hold their power. How do you get past that? I mean, part of the film is about you trying to create something that's going to make people feel good about the place, right? And kind of bring people together like the Olympic state and so on. I can say now there's a, well, a change coming. Like seriously, it's a change coming, especially with the younger people now, younger generations, they're really sick of the older people that are always on the, like, political parties. So I think a change is coming in the area, especially now with the, I don't know if you've seen

in Serbia a lot of big protests. So I think it's soon gonna come to Bosnia as well, as soon as we wake up from the dream. There's the line in the film that the track is in some ways, what is it, the symbol of the flame that almost got extinguished but kept burning. You love the city that you're from. It's, I will say the same sentence like from the movie. I believe still that there's nothing like this in the world.

Like the Olympic spirit and the Sarajevo spirit. It's such a unique thing. I can't even describe it. You really have to go there and see it. It's not something I can describe. Give me a taste of it. What is that spirit of Sarajevo? You meet a stranger, but then he's a family to you as well. Maybe you can help me out on this because you felt it maybe. Yeah, you said you went over there, you were looking for kind of connection in some ways.

I think there's a level of familiarity with strangers. Like you meet someone and then five minutes, you know, you're holding a baby or you're at your grandma's house. It's hard to describe if you've never been there, but it's just the warmth of the people and they really, they treat strangers and neighbors like family. And I think it's just such a beautiful thing. And I think that spirit and that kind of open arms vibe just is really intoxicating. That's what this film is really about, right? In some ways. Yeah, I think it's about connection, community,

and people banding together and resilience. What would it mean for the city if this track were to be restored to international standards? Oh, it would mean a lot. New job openings, new tourists coming in, new attraction. But most importantly, the sports is gonna be alive again People are gonna have more options to choose from they're gonna have some I

guess The way I see it. It's like a new hope. Let's say people don't have to leave people could stay people Yeah, people could say people could feel like still some What I usually like to say is that people always talk about the Olympics of 84 and how it was good, but nobody likes to talk about how it can be good again. So I think that this could be like that. Like if it were rebuilt, I think it would bring back the old Olympic spirit and then a joy in people. Winter Olympics coming up in Italy in 2026. You hoping to compete again?

Yeah. Uh, yeah. And it's a scary thought. I will be very honest. I'm very stressed about it. Um, I just keep thinking about it and my stomach just turns upside down when I think about it. Uh, it's a bit, it's a thing that means a lot to me and, uh, just

because it's a sport that I love. So, um, I try not to think about it too much, but it's just stronger than me. I feel like I'm going to make it. I don't want to jinx myself, but still, it's a tough road in front of me. I hope you get there. Yeah, I hope so as well. This is a really beautiful film. It's great to talk to you both about it.

Thank you for being here. Thanks for having us. Appreciate it. Yeah, thank you for having us us here And just one more thing I need to mention I wouldn't have been here without help of Ryan and Graham where I'm sleeping at currently Graham's the video editor So basically without the crew here, I wouldn't have even been able to come here So yeah, that's that's what I said in the beginning like they're a part of the family and then it just somehow it worked out For this trip as well. That's really great. That's that spirit that runs through that film said in the beginning, like they're a part of the family and then it just somehow it worked out for this trip as well. That's really great. That's that spirit that runs through that film. Ryan

Sidhu is the director of The Track. Mirza Nikolaev is a luge athlete from Sarajevo. The Track is screening as part of the Hot Docs Film Festival in Toronto. For more CBC podcasts, go to cbc.ca slash podcasts.