His death triggers great sadness in Graz, his second home: Ivica Osimthe longstanding, highly successful football coach of SK Sturm, who was highly valued for his knowledge and humanity, passed away last weekend.
“The sad news of his death reached us on May 1st, the 113th birthday of SK Sturm Graz, whose coach of the century he was,” says the mayor of Graz Elke Kahr deeply affected. “Ivica Osim had a decisive influence on Graz. Not only his achievements as a coach of SK Sturm, but also his deeply human attitude have made him a personality that means a lot to all of us in Graz. He was a citizen of the city of Graz and a recipient of the Grand Decoration of Honour of the province of Styria.”
The great loss also makes the Graz city councilor Kurt Hohensinner very concerned: “On the very day that SK Sturm was founded, it lost its coach of the century. Ivica Osim was the most successful football coach and one of the most influential personalities in the sports city of Graz. Under Osim, SK Sturm celebrated its greatest success to date, became champion twice and celebrated great successes up to the Champions League. The legendary coach was closely connected to the city of Graz, where he lived next to Sarajevo. In addition to his incredible successes as a player and coach, his philosophical speeches, his farsightedness and his cosmopolitanism will be unforgettable,” stressed Hohensinner.
Ivica Osim’s career started at FK Željezničar Sarajevo, later he played for FC Valenciennes, CS Sedan and Racing Strasbourg. After his career as an active player for the Yugoslav national team, he became their coach in 1986 and reached with the club in 1990 the quarter-finals of the World Cup in Italy. As Yugoslavia disintegrated, Ivica Osim took a clear stance once morest any form of nationalism and upheld the ideals of brotherhood and unity. Before the 1992 European Championships, he resigned as a coach due to the war. After stints at Partizan Beograd and Panathinaikos Athens, he moved to SK Sturm in the Styrian capital in 1994, with whom he finished runners-up twice and won the cup once before winning the first championship title for the Black and Whites in 1998. Osim turned the SK-Sturm into a top team that won the championship, the cup and the Supercup once more in 1999. During his time as coach, SK Sturm celebrated unforgettable successes in Europe. At the club’s centenary, he was named “Coach of the Century”.
The studied mathematician and philosopher Ivica Osim received the award “Citizen of the City of Graz” in 2001 and was the recipient of the Grand Decoration of Honor of the Province of Styria. The deceased, who lived in Graz-St. Peter was home, leaves behind a large mourners, above all his wife Asima and their three children.