January the 30th, 2024 – Croatian Radio New York has a new podcast ‘Croatia and Sport‘, which will present athletes, coaches and experts in the field of sport from the homeland and abroad.
Interviews and discussions will be conducted about the accomplishments of remarkably talented Croatian athletes, sportsmen and politicians, as well as other interesting topics related to sport.
In the podcast, host Srecko Mavrek and technical editor Josip Bogovic will invite guests with a variety of perspectives to speak. The first podcast featured 16-year-old football player Sierra Floricic from New York, who received an invitation from Croatia to join the Croatian women’s U-17 soccer team.
Her family lives in Queens, where Sierra is in 11th grade at St. John’s Preparatory School. Her father is from Labin, her mother is from Porec, and she has a younger brother. In her fluent Croatian, she proudly explained that they speak only Croatian at home. In addition, she pointed out that she spends two months in Croatia every summer.
Currently, she plays midfield or defence for NYCFC as captain. With the help of teachers and friends, she balances school and club commitments. She is actually an excellent scholar with the highest possible GPA 4.0.
“I’m very proud to play for the Croatian national football team. I was very happy when they invited me to Croatia. I was in Osijek last summer for preparations, and again in December in Medulin for the Croatian national football team camp. All the girls I met there were excellent players. Most of the girls are from Croatia, but there are some from the diaspora – one girl from each of Canada, Australia, Austria, Switzerland and Germany, as well as me from America.” Sierra told Croatian Radio New York (Hrvatski Radio NY).
When Sierra was asked about the difference between playing football in Croatia and America, she replied, “The speed of the game in Croatia is very fast. Girls put a lot more emphasis on their strength.” In the future, Sierra plans to continue playing football as well as studying in either America or in Croatia. You can listen to the entire podcast on Croatian Radio New York’s website.
