An Olympic gold medal is often seen as the final point of success, the pinnacle of a career that closes the circle of years of work, discipline, and sacrifice. However, what comes after is rarely discussed, the space that remains when the spotlight fades and the athlete is left alone with the question of what next.
It is precisely this dimension that Andreja Leški’s arrival at this year’s Slovenian Advertising Festival (SOF) opens up. The Slovenian judoka and Olympic champion from Paris, who recently ended her professional career, steps onto the SOF stage to enter a conversation that goes beyond sport and moves into the realm of personal decisions, identity, and change.
In an exclusive interview led by Saša Jerković, a long-time sports journalist known for his direct approach and ability to draw out honest answers from his interlocutors, the focus will not be on results that are already known, but on what preceded them and what followed after.
Leški will speak about the path that led to Olympic gold, but also about the moments that are not visible on the winners’ podium. About balancing top-level sport and private life, the psychological pressure that comes with expectations, and the reasons why she, perhaps unexpectedly, decided to close one of the most successful chapters of her career.
A particularly intriguing question is why the tatami became uncomfortable for her. This is not only a metaphor for the physical space of combat, but also for a broader context in which an athlete reexamines their own motivation, limits, and future.
In addition to her sporting achievements, Leški has also established herself as a voice within the community, through her role as president of the athletes’ commission at the Judo Federation of Slovenia, where she actively participates in shaping the sports environment and advocates for the importance of education, personal development, and mental preparation.
The talk titled Golden Willpower will take place on May 15 at 13:30 at Magazin Grando in Portorož, as part of the programme of the 35th edition of SOF. The audience will have the opportunity to look behind the scenes of a career that is often reduced to medals and results, but is in fact built through a series of invisible decisions, sacrifices, and internal struggles.
The content was created in cooperation with the Slovenian Tourist Board, further confirming how the festival programme also opens space for topics that go beyond industry frameworks and enter a broader social and personal context.
