Serbian students arrive in Brussels after 2,000km ultramarathon for democracy

13 May 2025

A group of Serbian students arrived in Brussels on Monday after completing a nearly 2,000km ultramarathon from Novi Sad, as part of a growing wave of youth-led activism demanding democratic reform and accountability from the Serbian government.

Under the banner From My Village to Brussels, the symbolic run saw nearly two dozen students make the journey to Brussels, where they are scheduled to meet MEPs from several political groups. They will also hold meetings with European Commissioner for Enlargement Martha Kos and Commissioner for Youth Glenn Micallef.

Reaction to tragedy

The 1,993km relay began on 25 April and was originally intended to include 16 participants — one for each of the people who died following the collapse of a new canopy at Novi Sad’s Chinese-renovated railway station.

The disaster sparked national outrage and mass protests, with demonstrators calling for accountability from president Aleksandar Vučić’s government. The student contingent was later expanded to 21 runners, each covering 15km a day in a relay format until they reached Brussels.

This is not the first act of protest by Serbian youth. In late April, 80 students cycled 1,400 km from Novi Sad to Strasbourg over 13 days to meet European lawmakers. These visible, physically demanding journeys are part of a broader grassroots campaign to keep Serbia’s democratic decline on the EU’s radar.

From Novi Sad to Strasbourg: students call for reform in Serbia

After months of sustained demonstrations, 80 Serbian students completed a 13-day, 1,400km bicycle journey from Novi Sad to Strasbourg last week...

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On 7 May, just a day after the European Parliament adopted a resolution on Serbia's European integration, criticising the Western Balkan country's non-compliance with the EU's foreign policy, Vučić travelled to Moscow and met with Russian president Vladimir Putin.

“I know that criticism from Brussels will follow, and I expect the EU to punish me, not Serbia… I was elected by the Serbian people… I was not elected in Riga, Tallinn, Vilnius, or anywhere else,” Vučić said.

With the protests in their sixth month, the students and protestors are calling for early parliamentary elections in hopes of ousting Vučić.

^{Serbian students march in protest © PHOTO ANDREK ISAKOVIC / AFP}

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