At Center Court With Velimir Radinovic – Ohio State Buckeyes
12/22/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Velimir Radinovic steps onto the court each week dressed in a jersey and a pair Nike basketball shoes. But before his days in the scarlet and gray, Radinovic would step onto the dance floor in velvet pants and pointed shoes.
Long before his days of shooting hoops, Radinovic, the senior buckeye captain who hails from Toronto, Ontario began folk dancing at the age of 12.
“I began folk dancing after attending so many dance practices with my mom and sister,” Radinovic said.
Radinovic took up the activity, because it was sponsored by his church and was a great way to socialize within his community. Guys and girls of all ages participated in the folk dancing.
“I would attend practice a couple of times a week at Dixie Church and would perform recitals after our routines had been perfected,” Radinovic said.
Radinovic would perform the recitals during the summer at picnics or at different cultural festivals, where cultures from all over the globe would be represented.
“It was a great experience to be able to show our talent to such a wide variety of people,” Radinovic said.
The recitals consisted of one or two dances, where the performers would stand in a circle and dance to the sounds of Serbian folk music. Radinovic has close ties with the Serbian culture, because his parents were born in the former Yugoslavia. Radinovic also speaks Serbian.
“My parents moved here before Velimir and I were born,” Vesna Rainovic, Velimir’s sister said. “But they have always kept us apart of the culture.”
The dances that Radinovic would perform told a story about Serbian culture.
“The dances have a lot of history behind them,” Vesna Radinovic said. “Everything from the costumes to the singing involved the Serbian culture.
The costumes were designed to represent different areas of the former Yugoslavia. The costumes had a lot of detailing, including embroidery and sequins. “My outfit consisted of a white shirt with detailing, navy pants, a vest and leather-bound shoes,” Radinovic said.
Radinovic’s mother and father were both very involved with their activities of folk dancing and some of their fondest memories of performing were created with their family.
“Velimir only performed for a short amount of time, but it was something he enjoyed and it always made me happy to watch him and his sister perform together,” Rada Radinovic, Velimir’s mother, said.
Folk dancing helped Radinovic to learn the fundamentals of footwork. The skills he obtained during that time now allow him to dominate against his opponents in the paint.
“I never thought folk dancing and basketball could ever have anything in common, but I found that I was able to master the skill of footwork and learn the value of teamwork through my instructor and partners,” Radinovic said.
Radinovic gave up the art of Serbian folk dancing after a few months to start his basketball career. Although his days of folk dancing are only a memory of the past, he still applies the lessons he learned to the game of basketball.
