Nenad Aničić – From Serbian National Team Member to Coach of New Champions
Nenad Aničić is a former member of the Serbian national taekwondo team, a Master Professor of Sport and Physical Education, and today a coach who sees his life calling in working with children and young people. His sporting and pedagogical mission is based on the idea that taekwondo is not just a martial art, but a powerful educational tool that builds healthy, confident, and disciplined young individuals.
Nenad took his first taekwondo steps under the guidance of coach Boris Gorjup, with whom he achieved his first competitive successes and built a relationship that went beyond the classic coach–athlete dynamic. For Nenad, Boris Gorjup was not only a coach, but also a mentor, a friend, and a life role model—someone who shaped him both as an athlete and as a person. The values he adopted at that time—respect, perseverance, humility, and trust in the process—today form the foundation of his work with children.
His national team career began in 2006 with his participation in the World Junior Championships in Vietnam, which was also his first appearance for the Serbian national team. In 2007, he competed at the European Championships in Baku, Azerbaijan, where he reached the round of 16 and confirmed his place among Europe’s junior elite. In 2009, Nenad represented Serbia in the Under-21 European Championships, where he advanced to the medal rounds and was stopped in the match that decided a place on the podium.
After the end of his competitive career, Nenad Aničić further enriched his extensive sports experience with formal education, earning the title of Master Professor of Sport and Physical Education. The combination of elite sporting experience and professional pedagogical knowledge forms the basis of his unique approach to working with children.
In his work with the youngest athletes, Nenad places special emphasis on proper motor development, the development of coordination, flexibility, and strength, as well as on building self-confidence, work habits, and a positive self-image. Training sessions are adapted to the child’s age, designed through play, gradual learning, and a clear structure, so that children can fall in love with sport and develop healthy life habits.
For him, medals and results are important, but never at the expense of a child’s health, happiness, and emotional development. His coaching philosophy is based on the belief that true success is achieved when a child comes to training with a smile, feels accepted, safe, and motivated to become the best version of themselves.
A special place in his coaching philosophy is held by what he learned from his coach Boris Gorjup: that a coach does not create only champions, but above all good people. Guided by this idea, Nenad today leads his club, creating a positive, family-like environment in which every child has the opportunity to progress at their own pace.
Today, Nenad Aničić represents a combination of an athlete, a pedagogue, and a mentor. As a former member of the Serbian national team and a Master Professor of Sport and Physical Education, he builds new generations of children with patience, knowledge, and love for taekwondo—children who leave the gym not only as better athletes, but also as better people.
