PALJK Tilka

General
FROM SLOVENIA TO ZAMBIA
She chose to represent Zambia instead of her birth country, Slovenia. She first travelled to Zambia to visit her grandmother and fell in love with the country. "That was the beginning of my love affair with Zambia and 19 years on [in 2016], that love has continued to blossom. Many people question my obsession with this African country but I guess love is inexplicable. I am a daughter of the soil, a Lenje, a Zambian." Following the death of her mother in 2014 she moved from Slovenia to South Africa to live with one of her guardians, before earning a scholarship to SPIRE Swimming Academy in Geneva, OH, United States of America in 2017. She moved to South Africa in 2018 due to the lack of swimming facilities in Zambia. (akomanet.com, 08 Aug 2016; zambianobserver.com, 19 Jan 2021; nkwazimagazine.com, 15 Jun 2021)

PERSONAL LOSS
She says that the passing away of her mother due to cancer led to her swimming as much as she could. "I kept going because my mum was diagnosed with cancer and my only outlet, somewhere where I can go and feel like life isn't falling apart, was in the pool. I swam as much as I could. I went to every session that I could just to get my mind off it. It was difficult after she passed away because I realised that I had no other reason to swim anymore but for myself. So I continued because it made me happy and that's how I got better." (sportsgazette.co.uk, 29 Oct 2018)

MENTAL HEALTH
She has struggled with her mental health in the past. After failing to qualify for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, she suffered from depression. In March 2017 she moved to Geneva, OH, United States of America after earning a scholarship to train at the SPIRE Swimming Academy, but struggled to adapt to the training and diet. "It took a bit of a toll on me and I started seeing a psychologist, and she was really great and she really just helped me get through the tough time I was having. I've overcome mental health issues with the help of a lot of people, medication and medical professionals. I have seen psychologists, psychiatrists and I have the support of my family, and I'm grateful that I have a support system that for the most part understands." (zambianobserver.com, 19 Jan 2021; nkwazimagazine.com, 15 Jun 2021)