Old Bridge marks silent dive on 9 November 2026

Old Bridge (Old Bridge) in Mostar marked the 33rd anniversary of its destruction with a silent dive on 9 November 2026. The commemoration combined a jump without applause, flowers in the Neretva and the attendance of local schoolchildren. It connected a remembrance ceremony with the rebuilt crossing that now links the two sides of the city.

Silent dive marks the Old Bridge anniversary

The event took place at 10.16am, the time at which the bridge collapsed into the river on 9 November 1993. Ahmed Sejdovi?, known as Rambo, carried out the jump as a member of the Mostari Diving Club. A siren recalling the general danger signal used during the war accompanied the dive.

The 9 November commemoration also included flowers thrown into the Neretva. Pupils from Zalik Elementary School attended, giving the event a community and educational element alongside the diving club ceremony. The reported programme was held at the bridge itself, rather than at a separate venue in Mostar.

Mostar bridge carries reconstruction into remembrance

The Ottoman stone arch was built in 1566 and became one of the principal monuments associated with Mostar. Shelling destroyed it in 1993, after which restoration began in 2000. The reconstructed bridge officially opened in 2004 and, with the Old Town Centre, was added to UNESCO protection in 2005.

The date of the silent dive therefore related directly to both the bridge's wartime loss and its present form. The same span that hosted the 2026 remembrance is a reconstruction, not the surviving structure completed in the sixteenth century. A local report on the silent dive records the 10.16am timing and the participation of children from Mostar primary schools.

A rebuilt crossing remains the ceremony site

Remembrance at the bridge also reflects the role of diving in Mostar's cultural life. The 9 November jump was not presented as the regular summer competition, but as a symbolic act linked to the anniversary of the destruction. Its silence and the flowers changed the familiar performance into a public act of memory.

The bridge's setting makes that link visible to visitors. The arch spans the Neretva in the centre of Mostar, while the surrounding Old Town forms part of the protected cultural area. Travellers can see the crossing, the river and the rebuilt stonework in the same place where the commemoration was held.

Visiting Old Bridge: what travellers from Western Europe should know

• The remembrance programme took place at Old Bridge in Mostar on 9 November 2026, with the silent dive at 10.16am.
• The event was a completed commemoration involving the Mostari Diving Club, flowers, a siren and Zalik Elementary School pupils; it was not the regular summer diving competition.
• The bridge stands over the Neretva in Mostar's Old Town, whose protected area was placed on the UNESCO list in 2005.
• The crossing is a reconstructed Ottoman stone bridge: construction dates to 1566, restoration began in 2000 and the rebuilt span reopened in 2004.
• The paved arch is steep and can be slippery, so visitors should leave diving to trained local divers.
• Bosnia and Herzegovina uses Bosnian, Croatian and Serbian as official languages, and the national currency is the convertible mark.

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Frequently asked questions about Old Bridge

When did the silent dive take place at Old Bridge?

The commemoration took place on 9 November 2026, with the jump performed at 10.16am by Mostari Diving Club member Ahmed Sejdovi?.

What happened at Old Bridge on 9 November 2026?

The programme marked the anniversary of the bridge's 1993 destruction with a jump without applause, flowers in the Neretva, a siren and schoolchildren's attendance.

Where is Old Bridge and how do you get there?

Old Bridge crosses the Neretva in the Old Town of Mostar. The bridge is reached on foot through the old-town streets.