Toše Proeski: 19 years — memorial marathon from Nova Gradiška to Kruševo

North Macedonia and the wider Balkans mark 19 years since the death of Toše Proeski, who died in a road crash near Nova Gradiška while traveling to Zagreb. On the anniversary, runners from Nova Gradiška set out on a traditional memorial marathon that this year is being held for the 19th time.

Fourteen participants are taking part in the event. The run began with 13 marathoners leaving the memorial in Nova Gradiška; one more runner will join the group inside North Macedonia. Across Croatia the athletes will run roughly 200 kilometres. Due to national regulations, the participants will cross Serbia by vehicle, and from the border with North Macedonia they will run another 220 kilometres to Kruševo.

Route and finish

The marathon started in front of the memorial monument in Nova Gradiška and is scheduled to arrive in Kruševo today, the anniversary of Proeski’s death. The final destination is the tomb and commemorative site at Gumenje in Kruševo, where Proeski is buried.

Organizers keep the memorial run as one of the recurring ways to honour Proeski’s legacy in music and charity. The participants follow a cross-border route that combines long-distance running with regulated transport where required, and aims to reach Gumenje in time for commemorative events in Kruševo.

Toše Proeski’s life ended in the year he had marked ten years of a successful career and was becoming an international artist. The English-language album he was preparing was released posthumously under the title The Hardest Thing.

Born on 25 January 1981, Todor Proeski first attracted attention as a fifth-grader at the Zlatno Slavejče festival in 1992, where he sang a song in the Vlach language. He launched his professional career after winning MelFest in Prilep in 1997, performed at major regional festivals, represented the Republic of Macedonia at the Eurovision Song Contest in Istanbul in 2004 and became a UNICEF ambassador the same year.

Proeski released seven albums, several of them recorded or translated into Serbian and Croatian. His final album, Igri bez granici, was promoted two weeks before the crash. His last concert was a humanitarian performance at the City Stadium on 5 October 2007, organised to improve educational conditions in North Macedonia.

Photo: press material from the event