Winning gold in front of a home crowd is extra special, and at the Split 1990 European Athletics Championships Snezana Pajkic upset the field to do just that.
In the lead up to the Birmingham 2026 on 10-16 August, we are taking a look back at 26 classic moments from the European Athletics Championships, including the moment that Pajkic captured the nations hearts.
The Background
At 15-years-old Pajkic made her international debut for Yugoslavia at the Cottbus 1985 European Athletics U20 Championships, but being one of the youngest in the field she placed sixth in her heat for the 1500m in 4:29.79.
Although just one year later at the world U20 championships she would improve to 4:16.03 in Athens to take the bronze medal.
Winning a global U20 medal at 16-years-old meant she had put herself up there as a young talent to watch, and it wouldn’t take long for more medal to follow.
She would return to the European U20 Championships in 1987 and storm to her first international title, still just 17-years-old.
The following year the she had one more shot at the world U20 championships to take the title, and although she fell just shy of gold she still took silver.
Her last U20 international would be the Varazdin 1989 European Athletics U20 Championships, and she would go into the home championships as the reigning champion.
She was by far the favourite to win and she didn’t disappoint. Pajkic defended her title, taking the win by nearly a whole second to become a two-time champion.
What Happened
The European Athletics Championships had returned to Yugoslavia for the second, and last, time as the nation hoped to improve on the one silver medal they won when they last hosted 28 years prior.
On the final day the Yugoslavia watched on, still hoping for a gold. But their eyes weren’t initially hopefully gazing towards the track, they were actually looking towards Dragutin Topic, father-to-be of 2025 world bronze medallist Angelina Topic’s, in the men’s high jump.
Earlier that summer he had taken the world U20 title with a jump of 2.37m, which still stands as the world U20 record now.
But while he was competing in the high jump, Pajkic stepped onto the track. She had placed seventh in her heat the day prior with 4:09.53, but it was just enough to make it to the final.
But also on the start line was a collection of Olympic, world and European medallists, so 19-year-old Pajkic was far from the favourite.
As the gun went and the 12 women took off, Pajkic managed to tuck herself in right behind Switzerland’s Sandra Gasser, who led most of the race.
As each lap passed the pack remained mostly unchanged. Until 600m to go.
Gasser started to pick up the pace and the field started to stretch out, with each athlete biding their time to strike, though many unsuccessfully as they would fall back into line after an attempt of moving up.
Though through it all, Pajkic remained quietly in touch with the leaders, hugging the inside of the lane. With 200m to go Pajkic was in third, but with so many women still packed in tight, it was going to be a real fight to the line as she fell back into fourth on that final bend.
But just as they slingshot onto the home straight, Pajkic untucked herself and suddenly started picking off each woman one by one until she had taken the lead with about 35 metres to go. By this time the whole stadium had be captured by her feat, roaring her over the line and straight into Topic’s arms.
The Aftermath
“My main task in Split was to reach the 1500m final,” said Pajkic in an interview in 2020. “The race in Sarajevo [ahead of the championships where she ran a lifetime best of 4:08.21] was a good hint that I could do it.
“However, the story almost finished in the qualifications. I was seventh and made the finals by barely a second. I knew very well who I was running against - Melinte, Kiessling, Rogacheva - not to mention others.
“I entered the competition relieved, without the expectation of doing anything."
“Luckily for me, the race went exactly the way that suited me: it was run in a group, I waited patiently for the last 100 meters and the finish. I knew that the other girls, regardless of their experience, could not follow me.”
Then in 1991 Pajkic failed to reach the 1500m final at the world championships in Tokyo before not even qualifying for the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona.
However, she remained very involved with the sport and delivered many successful grass roots athletics projects in Serbia.
She has also been a member of the Women’s Committee and Sport Committee in the Serbian National Olympic Committee and part of the Local Organising Committees for countless major athletics events in Serbia, including the Belgrade 2017 European Athletics Indoor Championships.
As a result, in 2017 she was awarded a prestigious European Athletics Golden Pin, an award presented to those who have given special service and assistance to the development of athletics.