Newsroom
She stood on international podiums wearing the Cyprus colors, heard the national anthem played after winning gold, and thought about making her small country proud with every throw.
Yet back home, some people still questioned whether Marina Hadjicosta was truly Cypriot.
The 17-year-old discus champion has spoken publicly about the racist comments she received following her recent sporting successes, delivering a simple but powerful response: Cyprus is her country, regardless of her ancestry or skin colour.
“I may not have ‘Cypriot blood’ in my veins, but I am a proud Cypriot,” she wrote on social media.
Hadjicosta was born in Limassol on Feb. 8, 2009, and adopted at birth by Simoni Papaleontiou Hadjicosta and Savvas Hadjicosta. Her biological mother was Polish, and her biological father was Nigerian.
But her story is also unmistakably Cypriot. Her mother is a refugee from Varosha who settled in Limassol after the 1974 coup, while her father comes from Limassol and has family roots in Pachna and Akapnou.
She attended the 3rd Primary School before moving to Laniteio Athletic Gymnasium and then Laniteio Athletic Lyceum.
Hadjicosta recently won bronze in the women’s discus at the World Athletics U20 Championships in Oregon with a throw of 54.88 metres. Weeks earlier, she had won gold at the European U18 Championships in Italy.
She described hearing the Cypriot national anthem after her European victory as an emotional moment filled with pride. During the world championship, she said she competed with one thought in mind: making Cyprus shine.
For a country of fewer than 1 million people, every international medal feels personal. Cypriots celebrate when the flag rises and proudly claim athletes as their own. Hadjicosta’s experience, however, raises an uncomfortable question: Why should an athlete be embraced when she wins, but still be asked to prove that she belongs?
She said other Cypriot athletes, including hurdler Milan Trajkovic, have also faced similar discrimination despite representing the country with distinction.
Hadjicosta called on the state and the responsible authorities to tackle racism so people can live together without discrimination.
Her answer to those questioning her identity was perhaps more powerful than any medal count.
“How Cypriot I am is shown by my results and my humanity,” she wrote.
And after carrying the Cyprus flag onto two major podiums, she should not have to prove it at all.
