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Michael Saran, Sport2Life Founder

Mr. Saran is the founder of the Odien investment fund. Prior to founding the Odien Group in 2004, Mr. Saran worked in private investment firms in London, Boston, and Prague. Mr. Saran is also the founder of Sport2Life, a foundation aimed at supporting the education, development and health of children through their participation in organised sports. Mr. Saran graduated from Stanford University with degrees in Economics and International Relations and he received his MBA from Harvard Business School. He is fluent in Turkish and German and has a basic knowledge of Czech.

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Duje Božiković, Chairman of the Foundation Board

Mr. Božiković joined Odien’s Le Meridien Lav Hotel in April 2017. Prior to joining Lav, Mr. Božiković, a Split native, worked in Boston, USA as a General Manager of two brand new Marriott Hotels which he had managed from their construction to their business development and operation. Mr. Božiković holds a BA Degree from Lindenwood University in Saint Louis, USA that he attended on a sports scholarship. Mr. Božiković is also a project leader of Sport2Life in Croatia, a foundation aimed at supporting the education, development and health of children through participation in organised sports. He is a native Croatian speaker and fluent in English.

Bulent Turan

Bulent Turan, Sport2Life Turkey Director

Mr. Turan joined the Odien Group in 2006. He has a degree in Tourism, Hotel Management and Travel Agency Management. He was the financial manager of Ahoy, a subsidiary of Cedok. He is the director of Sport2Life in Turkey, a foundation aimed at supporting the education, development and health of youth through participation in organised sports. Mr. Turan is a native Turkish speaker, is fluent in English, and has a basic knowledge of German.

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Tea Gutović, Sport2Life Croatia

Tea joined Sport2life team in September 2020. She is a PhD Candidate in Sociology, with a Master’s degree in Sociology and Bachelor degree in Kinesiology. In her academic career, she conducted several research about sport and the importance of education through sport. She has been an active volleyball player for more than 10 years and she was a team captain of the team that competed in the highest rank of Croatian volleyball league. Prior to officially joining the Sport2life team, she volunteered in most of the Croatian programs of the foundation by helping in the organization of Lav Cup 2018 and 2019, as well Healthy School Break program and School of Sport and Healthy Living. She is a native Croatian speaker and fluent in English.

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Darko Žaja, Sport2Life Croatia

Darko joined Sport2life team in 2018 as a leader and coach at the School of Sport and Healthy Living and he participated and helped organize all the foundation’s programs. Darko joined the Le Méridien Lav Hotel in March 2007 as a sports and recreation supervisor. After graduation Kinesiology where he gained his first professional work experience with students as a demonstrator in swimming and basketball courses, he worked at the school of football, tennis and swimming, as a fitness instructor, and as a leader of sports programs and corrective gymnastics for children. He is a true sports lover and sports promoter, and has been involved in swimming, water polo and basketball. He is a native Croatian speaker and speaks English fluently.