The Tourist Board, the City of Nova Gradiška and numerous fans of Toše Proeski's work marked the 19th anniversary of the musician's tragic death. Nova Gradiška has thus welcomed marathon runners for the 19th consecutive year, with the memorial event organised by the Tourist Board and the City.
This year's ultra-marathon is 900 kilometres long, and Macedonian athletes will run in Toše's name. The memorial ultra-marathon symbolically connects the cities of his death and birth. The event grew out of Proeski's tragic death in 2007.
The sporting event was preceded by the laying of wreaths and the lighting of candles in front of the memorial at the Electrical Engineering and Economics School. Those present at the gathering included Deputy Mayor Matej Zboril, Sara Šefer and Ivana Matošević, as well as Toše's fans, the Macedonian ambassador to Croatia Dragan Gjurchevski, and Stela Prislan Fujs, president of the Toše Proeski Fun Club in Zagreb.
Toše Proeski died in a serious traffic accident on the motorway near Staro Petrovo Selo on 6 October 2007. His body was transported home by a Macedonian military helicopter from the NK Sloga Nova Gradiška stadium. In 2007, a helicopter took off from the site near the Electrical Engineering and Economics School with Proeski's body, heading to Macedonia. A memorial in his honour now stands at the NK Sloga Nova Gradiška stadium.
The Macedonian ambassador announced multi-day events in honour of Toše Proeski for next year, the 20th anniversary of the tragedy. It has been 19 years since Toše Proeski's tragic death, and residents of Nova Gradiška and other fans will mark the date of his tragic death on Wednesday, 14 October. The event is organised by the Tourist Board under the patronage of the City.
